東 — how to write the kanji for “east”
東 (“east”) is a JLPT N5 kanji taught in second grade in Japan. In newspapers it is one of the hundred most used kanji (37th). Its parts: 木 (“tree”, its radical), stroke 1; 日 (“day”), strokes 2–5; 木 (“tree”, its radical), strokes 6–8, each finished before the next. On its own it is the word higashi, “east”. Its common words take the reading tou: 東京 (“Tokyo”), 中東 (“Middle East”), 東北 (“north-east”) and 東海 (“Tōkai region”). Mainland Chinese writes it 东 (dōng, “east”), an HSK 1 character.
- Strokes
- 8
- JLPT
- N5
- Radical
- 木 (“tree”)
- On
- トウ
- Kun
- ひがし
Stroke by stroke
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- Horizontal ㇐top leftrightwards
- Vertical ㇑top leftdownwards
- Horizontal-turn ㇕leftrightwards → downwards
- Horizontal ㇐leftrightwards
- Horizontal ㇐leftrightwards
- Vertical ㇑topdownwards
- Left-falling stroke ㇒centerdown and left
- Right-falling stroke ㇏centerdown and right
Japanese and Chinese
The two models differ in shape, so our comparison does not claim an order; compare the numbered frames yourself (8 strokes in Japanese, 8 strokes in Chinese).
Trace it
Follow the numbers. Tracing help
Readings
- On (Chinese-derived)
- トウ tou
- Kun (native)
- ひがし higashi
- Meanings
- east
- Read tou
- 東京 中東 東北 東海 東南 東欧
- School year
- second grade
- Newspaper rank
- 37th of 2,500 (KANJIDIC2)
- Korean hanja
- 동 dong
- Common words
- 24 in JMdict
Words with 東
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 東京 | とうきょう toukyou | Tokyo |
| 中東 | ちゅうとう chuutou | Middle East |
| 東北 | とうほく touhoku | north-east; Tōhoku (northernmost six prefectures of Honshu) |
| 東海 | とうかい toukai | Tōkai region; eastern sea |
| 東南 | とうなん tounan | south-east |
| 東欧 | とうおう touou | Eastern Europe |
| 東西 | とうざい touzai | east and west; Orient and Occident |
| 東洋 | とうよう touyou | the East; the Orient |
| 北東 | ほくとう hokutou | northeast |
| 東部 | とうぶ toubu | eastern part; the east |
Most common first (JMdict).
Practice sheet
Print at 100%. Several kanji: worksheet maker.
Keep going
Same parts:
JLPT N5, in list order: