Hanzi Writer

How to Write 舴 (zé) — Meaning “small boat”

zé 11 strokes Radical: 舟

舴 (zé) means "small boat" in Chinese. It has 11 strokes with the radical 舟.

Rated 4.2/5 in difficulty (advanced).

Appears in 3+ common words including 舴艋 (zé měng), 舴艋舟 (zé měng zhōu), 小舴 (xiǎo zé).

Due to its 11 strokes, Hanzi Writer's error detection shows 舴 requires focused practice — most learners need 10+ attempts for consistent accuracy.

Stroke order practice for 舴 - zé

Practice Writing 舴 (zé)

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How to Write 舴

The character 舴 (zé) is written with 11 strokes. Follow the standard Chinese stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside before inside. The radical 舟 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 zé (舴) Mean in Chinese?

舴 means small boat.

Character Data

Character舴
Pinyinzé (ze)
Meaningsmall boat
Strokes11
Radical舟
Difficulty4.2/5

Origin of 舴

This character combines the semantic radical 舟 (boat) with the phonetic component 乍 (zhà). While 乍 originally means 'suddenly,' here it solely provides pronunciation, and the whole character denotes a small, light boat often used in rivers and lakes.

💡 Memory Tip: Picture a tiny boat (舟) that suddenly (乍) darts forward like a water strider.

Common Words with 舴

舴艋 zé měng
small boat / skiff
舴艋舟 zé měng zhōu
small boat / skiff
小舴 xiǎo zé
Small boat

Example Sentences

湖上有几只舴艋。

hú shàng yǒu jǐ zhī zé měng

There are several small boats on the lake.

舴艋舟在水上漂。

zé měng zhōu zài shuǐ shàng piāo

The small boat is floating on the water.

他划着一只小舴。

tā huà zhe yī zhī xiǎo zé

He was rowing a small boat.

Similar Characters Comparison

Character Pinyin Strokes Radical
舴 (current) zé 11 舟
舡 chuán 9 舟
舢 shān 9 舟
舣 yǐ 9 舟
Stroke order practice for 舴 - zé

Practice Writing 舴 (zé)

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

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Frequently Asked Questions about 舴

The left part is 舟, the radical for boat, which shows the character is about boats. The right part is 乍, which gives a hint about the pronunciation (zé). Together, they mean a small boat.

Characters with Radical 舟

舟zhōu舡chuán舢shān舣yǐ舨bǎn航háng舫fǎng般bān舭bǐ舯zhōng

Other 11-Stroke Characters

㒼mán䙴qiān乿zhì偃yǎn假jiǎ/jià偈jì偎wēi偏piān偕xié做zuò