How to Write 星 (xīng) — Meaning “Star”

Imagine the sun (日) giving birth (生) to a tiny star in the night sky. The sun at the top creates the star below, so you always remember to write 日 first and then 生.

Write the top radical 日 first (four strokes), then the bottom part 生 (five strokes). A common mistake is to write 生 with a wrong stroke order—remember that after the first two strokes (撇 and 横), you write a 横 (horizontal), then a 竖 (vertical), and finally two more 横 (horizontals). Keep the 日 slightly narrow so the character looks balanced.

The key difference is the bottom part: 星 has 生 (life/birth) below, while 旱 and 旰 both have 干 (dry) below. 旱 means 'drought' (dry weather), and 旰 means 'late in the day'—neither relates to stars. Visually, 生 has a vertical stroke through the middle, whereas 干 is simpler with just a horizontal and vertical crossing.

星 is very common in daily life. You find it in 星期 (week), 星星 (star), and 明星 (celebrity, literally 'bright star'). Culturally, 明星 is used for movie stars and famous people, and 星期 is the standard word for 'week' on calendars. The character also appears in many names and poems about the night sky.

Common words containing 星 include: 星期 (xīng qī) — Week; 星星 (xīng xīng) — Star; 明星 (míng xīng) — Star / Celebrity.