Learn Chinese Characters

Meaning

boat

Hear the Four Tones

The same syllable “zhou” becomes a different word in each tone. 舟 is the 1st tone. Tap any tone to hear a native voice and see its pitch shape.

Stroke Order

Tap Animate to watch the strokes in order, or Practice to trace it yourself.

Common Words

  • 龙舟lóng zhōudragon boat; imperial boat
  • 同舟共济tóng zhōu gòng jìcross a river in the same boat (idiom); fig. having common interests; obliged to collaborate towards common goals
  • 刻舟求剑kè zhōu qiú jiànlit. a notch on the side of a boat to locate a sword dropped overboard (idiom); fig. an action made pointless by changed circumstances
  • 方舟fāng zhōuark
  • 飞舟fēi zhōufast boat

Example Sentence

一叶小舟在江面上轻轻飘荡。Yí yè xiǎo zhōu zài jiāng miàn shàng qīng qīng piāo dàng.A small boat drifts gently on the river.

oneleafxiǎosmallzhōuboatzàiatjiāng(bound form) Yangtze Rivermiànfaceshàngon轻轻qīng qīnglightly飘荡piāo dàngto drift

Go deeper

Where this character comes from

A pictograph of a small boat seen from the side, with its planks and deck. It means ‘boat’ and is the radical in 船, 航, 般.

A way to remember it

A little hull with cross-planks — a boat.