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How to write 客 (kè, “customer”)

客 (kè), an HSK 1 character, means “customer” and “classifier”. It is a character whose parts combine into its meaning. Among the HSK words it appears in 不客气 (“you're welcome”), 做客 (“to be a guest or visitor”) and 客人 (“visitor”). Japanese reads it kyaku, “guest”, as a JLPT N3 kanji.

Pinyin
kè
Strokes
9
HSK
1
Radical
宀 (“roof”)

Stroke by stroke

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9

As a top-bottom character it splits into 宀 (“roof”, the radical), strokes 1–3; 各 (“each”), strokes 4–9, written the top first.

  1. Vertical ㇑topdown and right
  2. Dot ㇔top leftdownwards
  3. Horizontal hook ㇖top leftrightwards → down and left
  4. Left-falling stroke ㇒topdown and left
  5. Horizontal then left-falling ㇇toprightwards → down and left
  6. Right-falling stroke ㇏leftrightwards
  7. Vertical ㇑bottom leftdown and right → downwards
  8. Horizontal-turn ㇕bottom leftrightwards → down and left
  9. Horizontal ㇐bottomrightwards

Names of the strokes

Japanese and Chinese

Japanese and Chinese draw all 9 strokes in the same order and direction, by our stroke-by-stroke comparison.

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Japanese · KanjiVG · 9 strokes
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Chinese · Make Me a Hanzi · 9 strokes

Where 客 comes from

A person 各 welcomed under one's roof 宀; 各 also provides the pronunciation

Trace it

Follow the numbers. Tracing help

Pinyin and meaning

PinyinMeaningsTraditionalIn words
kè
fourth tone		customer; visitor; guest; classifier for servings or portions (when ordering food)—不客气 做客 客人 请客
HSK 2025 syllabus
level 1
2021 standard
level 1
HSK 2.0
in a level 1 word
Words with it
166 in CC-CEDICT

Words with 客

WordPinyinMeaning
不客气 不客氣búkèqiyou're welcome; don't mention it HSK 1
做客zuòkèto be a guest or visitor HSK 3
客人kèrénvisitor; guest HSK 3
请客 請客qǐngkèto give a dinner party; to entertain guests HSK 3
游客 遊客yóukètraveler; tourist HSK 3
客气 客氣kèqipolite; courteous HSK 4
旅客lǚkètraveler; tourist HSK 4
顾客 顧客gùkècustomer; client HSK 4
乘客chéngkèpassenger HSK 4
客厅 客廳kètīngliving room; sitting room HSK 4

HSK words first (CC-CEDICT).

Practice sheet

Print at 100%. Several characters: worksheet maker.

Keep going

HSK 1, in list order: