How to write 八
Animated Stroke Order of 八
Learn to write the Chinese character "八" by watching the stroke order animation of "八".
Stroke by Stroke: 八 Writing Order
Master the Chinese character '八' stroke by stroke with visual step-by-step instructions.
Follow the Calligraphy Master: Writing '八' Step-by-Step
Learn the proper way to write the Chinese character '八' through a video tutorial with a calligraphy teacher. Follow the Calligraphy Master's Step-by-Step Guide to Write the Chinese Character '八'. You can download the printable handwriting worksheets below and practice writing together with pen and paper.
Free Printable 八 Handwriting Practice Worksheets
Meaning of 八
Pinyin
bā
Radical
八
Strokes
2
Definition
eight / 8
Usage
★★★★★
八 [bā]
1. A number, the sum of seven plus one (represented as "捌" in banknotes and documents).
(En: eight)
Example: 面玲珑 (delicately beautiful).
Eight trigrams (the eight basic figures in "I Ching").
2. A number indicating an order, specifically the eighth (8th).
(En: the eighth (8th))
Example: 八世 (eighth generation); 八年 (eighth year).
【Movement】
The character is pictographic, resembling the appearance of two things separated and facing away from each other. It is one of the components of Chinese characters. Many characters containing "八" relate to division, dispersion, or separation.
Original meaning: to separate and leave each other (En: part; leave each other).
【Citation】
1. From "Shuowen Jiezi": 八 refers to separation; it resembles the shape of things turning back.
Duan Yucai’s note: "In the dialects of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, things and people are referred to as 八, indicating separation from people."
2. From "Yupian": 八 refers to numbers.
3. In "Book of Songs · Xiaoya · Cutting Wood": "Presented eight vessels."
4. In "Guanzi · Five Elements": "Geography uses eight." Note: "A number of less yin."
5. In "Records of the Grand Historian · Year Nine of Duke Xiang": "Meets the eight of Gen." The historian said this referred to the second line of the hexagram, with all five other lines changing. For divination, six is used but not eight. Eight remains unchanged as less yin.
6. In "Shangshu Dazhuan": "Eight eyebrows, like the character 八."
7. In "Strategies of the Warring States · Qi Strategies": "Zou Ji was over eight feet tall."
8. In "Shu · Shun's Code": "Eight sounds harmonize."
9. In "Strategies of the Warring States · Yan Strategies": "King Qin attacked Ke again, suffering eight injuries."
10. In "Book of the Later Han · Biography of Cui Shi": "Eight generations," referring to the Three Kings and Five Emperors.
【Example】
Examples include: 八音 (the collective term for ancient Chinese musical instruments, typically made from eight different materials: metal, stone, silk, bamboo, gourd, clay, leather, wood); 八拜 (a traditional greeting ceremony among disciples to their elders, also refers to tying bonds of kinship among non-relatives).
Zhu Bajie, character in Journey to the West 西遊記|西游记, with pig-like characteristics and armed with a muckrake / Pigsy in Arthur Waley's translation
Eighth Route Army, the larger of the two major Chinese communist forces fighting the Japanese in the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945)
Eight Banners, military organization of Manchu later Jin dynasty 後金|后金[Hou4 Jin1] from c. 1600, subsequently of the Qing dynasty
Laba congee, ceremonial rice porridge dish eaten on the 8th day of the 12th month in the Chinese calendar
Same Pronunciation Characters
Same Radical Characters
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Input Method for 八
Pinyin
ba1
Wubi
wty
Cangjie
ho
Zhengma
oa
Four Corner
80000
Unicode
U+516b
Stroke Number Category
HSK Level Category