How to write 但 (dàn, “but”)
但 (dàn), an HSK 2 character, means “but” and “merely”. As a left-right character it splits into 亻 (“person”, the radical), strokes 1–2; 旦 (“dan, female role in Chinese opera”), strokes 3–7, written the left part first. On its own it is an HSK 2 word; it also forms 但是 (“but”), 不但 (“not only (... but also ...)”) and 非但 (“not only”). Japanese reads it tada-shi, “however”, as a JLPT N1 kanji.
- Pinyin
- dàn
- Strokes
- 7
- HSK
- 2
- Radical
- 亻 (“person”)
Stroke by stroke
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- top leftdown and left
- top leftdownwards
- topdownwards
- toprightwards → downwards
- centerrightwards
- centerrightwards
- bottom leftrightwards
Japanese and Chinese
The two models differ in shape, so our comparison does not claim an order; compare the numbered frames yourself (7 strokes in Japanese, 7 strokes in Chinese).
Trace it
Follow the numbers. Tracing help
Pinyin and meaning
| Pinyin | Meanings | Traditional | In words |
|---|---|---|---|
| dàn fourth tone | but; yet; however; still; merely; only; just | — | 但是 不但 非但 但愿 |
- HSK 2025 syllabus
- level 2
- 2021 standard
- level 2
- HSK 2.0
- in a level 2 word
- Words with it
- 9 in CC-CEDICT
Words with 但
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 但 | dàn | but; yet HSK 2 |
| 但是 | dànshì | but; however HSK 2 |
| 不但 | búdàn | not only (... but also ...) HSK 3 |
| 非但 | fēidàn | not only HSK 7-9 |
| 但愿 但願 | dànyuàn | if only (sth were possible); I wish (that) HSK 7-9 |
| 但书 但書 | dànshū | proviso; qualifying clause |
| 但愿如此 但願如此 | dànyuànrúcǐ | if only it were so; I hope so (idiom) |
| 但凡 | dànfán | every single; as long as |
| 但说无妨 但說無妨 | dànshuōwúfáng | there is no harm in saying what one thinks (idiom) |
HSK words first (CC-CEDICT).
Practice sheet
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Keep going
HSK 2, in list order: