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How to Write 私 (sī) — Meaning “private; personal; selfish”

sī HSK Level 5 7 strokes Radical: 禾

私 (sī) means "private; personal; selfish" in Chinese. It has 7 strokes with the radical 禾, and is HSK Level 5.

Rated 3.5/5 in difficulty (challenging).

Harder than 27% of HSK Level 5 characters.

Appears in 3+ common words including 私人 (sī rén), 无私 (wú sī), 隐私 (yǐn sī).

Due to its 7 strokes, Hanzi Writer's error detection shows 私 requires focused practice — most learners need 10+ attempts for consistent accuracy.

Stroke order practice for 私 - sī

Practice Writing 私 (sī)

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How to Write 私

The character 私 (sī) is written with 7 strokes. Follow the standard Chinese stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside before inside. The radical 禾 is one of its key components.

Practice the correct stroke order with the Hanzi Writer app to see animated stroke-by-stroke guidance with real-time feedback.

What Does sī (私) Mean in Chinese?

私 means private; personal; selfish.

As an HSK Level 5 character, 私 is an intermediate-level character.

Character Data

Character私
Pinyinsī (si)
Meaningprivate; personal; selfish
Strokes7
Radical禾
HSK Level5
Difficulty3.5/5

Origin of 私

私 combines the radical 禾 (grain) with the component ム (a pictograph of a coiled or curved shape, anciently representing privacy or self-interest). The original meaning was 'private grain' or one's own harvest, later extended to 'private, personal, selfish'.

💡 Memory Tip: Picture a selfish person secretly hoarding a bundle of grain (禾) under a curved cloak (ム) so no one else can share it.

Common Words with 私

私人 sī rén
private; personal
无私 wú sī
Selfless
隐私 yǐn sī
privacy

Example Sentences

这是我的私人电话。

zhè shì wǒ de sī rén diàn huà

This is my private phone number.

老师的爱是无私的。

lǎo shī de ài shì wú sī de

The teacher's love is selfless.

我们要尊重他人隐私。

wǒ men yào zūn zhòng tā rén yǐn sī

We should respect others' privacy.

Similar Characters Comparison

Character Pinyin Strokes Radical
私 (current) sī 7 禾
禾 hé 5 禾
秀 xiù 7 禾
秃 tū 7 禾
Stroke order practice for 私 - sī

Practice Writing 私 (sī)

Open Hanzi Writer to see the animated stroke order and practice writing 私 with real-time feedback.

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Frequently Asked Questions about 私

私 is made of the radical 禾 (grain) on the left and the component 厶 (private, self) on the right. The left part suggests harvest or grain, while the right part indicates personal control, so together they mean personal property or selfishness.

More HSK Level 5 Characters

慰wèi岸àn摩mó拔bá拜bài版bǎn扮bàn棒bàng怨yuàn悲bēi辈bèi鼻bí彼bǐ幕mù辑jí宾bīn饼bǐng毒dú玻bō璃lí

Characters with Radical 禾

禾hé秀xiù秃tū秆gǎn秉bǐng秋qiū种zhǒng/zhòng科kē秒miǎo秕bǐ

Other 7-Stroke Characters

㐬liú㳄xián两liǎng严yán串chuàn丽lì乱luàn亨hēng亩mǔ伯bó