服 — how to write the kanji for “clothing”

服 means “clothing”, “admit” and “obey”; it is a JLPT N4 kanji, taught in third grade in Japan. Its parts: 月 (“moon or flesh”, its radical), strokes 1–4; 卩 (“seal”), strokes 5–6; 又 (“again”), strokes 7–8, each finished before the next. On its own it is the word fuku, “clothes; clothing”. Its common words take the reading fuku: 制服 (“uniform”), 服装 (“attire”), 不服 (“dissatisfaction”) and 洋服 (“Western-style clothes…”). Chinese reads it fú, “clothes”, at HSK 1.

Strokes: 8
JLPT: N4
Radical: 月 (“moon or flesh”)
On: フク

Stroke by stroke

Vertical then left-falling ㇓top leftdownwards
Horizontal-turn-hook ㇆top leftrightwards → downwards
Horizontal ㇐leftrightwards
Horizontal ㇐leftrightwards
Horizontal-turn-hook ㇆toprightwards → down and left
Vertical ㇑topdownwards
Horizontal then left-falling ㇇centerrightwards → down and left
Right-falling stroke ㇏centerdown and right

Japanese and Chinese

Japanese and Chinese draw all 8 strokes in the same order and direction, by our stroke-by-stroke comparison.

Japanese · KanjiVG · 8 strokes

Chinese · Make Me a Hanzi · 8 strokes

Trace it

Follow the numbers. Tracing help

Readings

On (Chinese-derived): フク fuku
Kun (native): none
Meanings: clothing; admit; obey; discharge
Read fuku: 制服服装不服洋服克服衣服
School year: third grade
Newspaper rank: 873rd of 2,500 (KANJIDIC2)
Korean hanja: 복 bok
Common words: 22 in JMdict

On and kun, explained

Words with 服

Word	Reading	Meaning
制服	せいふく seifuku	uniform
服装	ふくそう fukusou	attire; dress
不服	ふふく fufuku	dissatisfaction; discontent
洋服	ようふく youfuku	Western-style clothes (cf. traditional Japanese clothes)
克服	こくふく kokufuku	conquest; overcoming
衣服	いふく ifuku	clothes
和服	わふく wafuku	Japanese clothes
服役	ふくえき fukueki	penal servitude; serving time in prison
服飾	ふくしょく fukushoku	clothing and accessories; attire
私服	しふく shifuku	ordinary clothes; plain clothes

Most common first (JMdict).

Practice sheet

Print at 100%. Several kanji: worksheet maker.

Keep going

Same parts:

JLPT N4, in list order: