How to Write 浙 (zhè) — Meaning “Zhe (short for Zhejiang Province)”

Imagine water (氵) folding (折) like a river winding through Zhejiang province. Another way: think of "water breaking" — 折 means to break, and Zhejiang has many rivers that break through the landscape.

First write the three dots of 氵, then the left side of the right part: 扌 (hand radical), followed by 斤 (axe). A common mistake is mixing up the order of strokes in 折; remember 扌 comes before 斤. Keep the left side narrow and the right side balanced.

浙 has the right side 折 (break), while 沫 has 末 (end) and 沭 has 术 (technique). Visually, 浙 includes a hand radical (扌) and axe (斤), whereas 沫 and 沭 have different components. Their meanings are also different: 浙 refers to Zhejiang, 沫 means foam, and 沭 is a river name.

浙 appears most often in the name of Zhejiang Province (浙江) and related terms like 浙菜 (Zhejiang cuisine) and 浙商 (Zhejiang businessmen). It is not in the HSK vocabulary, but it is important for geography and culture. Zhejiang is known for its beautiful West Lake and active business community.

Common words containing 浙 include: 浙江 (zhè jiāng) — Zhejiang (a province in China); 浙菜 (zhè cài) — Zhejiang cuisine; 浙商 (zhè shāng) — Zhejiang businessmen.