How to Write 块 (kuài) — Meaning “Piece; chunk; (measure word).”

Imagine a lump of soil (土) that has a big crack in it, splitting into two pieces — the right side 夬 looks like a broken line. Visualize a 'chunk of dirt' falling apart, and the sound kuài reminds you of 'piece' like a 'quick' bite off a block.

Write the left radical 土 first (three strokes: horizontal, vertical, horizontal), then the right part 夬 (four strokes: horizontal fold, left-falling, horizontal, right-falling). A common mistake is making the 土 too wide or forgetting the last stroke of 夬 is a right-falling stroke, not a left-falling one. Keep the left part narrow and the right part balanced.

块 (kuài) means 'piece' and has 土 on the left, while 圣 (shèng) means 'holy' and has 又 (hand) on the top and 土 below. 圤 (rare, pǔ) is a variant of 块 but is almost never used today. Visually, 块 has 夬 on the right, 圣 has 又 above 土, and 圤 has a different right side (卜). In usage, 圣 is common in religious contexts, while 块 is everyday for money or objects.

块 is used as a measure word for pieces (一块蛋糕 'a piece of cake') and colloquially for the Chinese yuan (一块钱 'one yuan'). In daily speech, '一块儿' means 'together', as in going somewhere with friends. A cultural note: saying '块' for money is very common in northern China, while southerners may use '文' less often.

Common words containing 块 include: 一块 (yī kuài) — one piece; one yuan; 一块儿 (yī kuài ér) — together; 块头 (kuài tóu) — Build; size (of a person)..