簡
Character learning workspace

jiǎn · simple, succinct, terse

Master the form, understand its parts, and learn how it behaves in real Chinese.

Watch · inspect · write

Learn every stroke in 簡

Replay the complete order, pause on difficult movements, inspect one stroke at a time, then write it yourself with live correction.

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Stroke graphics: Make Me a Hanzi / Arphic Public License
Step-by-step explorer

See how 簡 is constructed

Switch between the accumulated form and the isolated movement of each stroke.

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Character anatomy

Understand the reusable parts

The decomposition shows how the visual pieces fit together, not necessarily the character’s historical origin.

Writing notes

Shape and proportion

18Total strokes

Count each continuous pen movement once, including turns and hooks.

Top-bottomCharacter structure

Keep the upper section balanced above the lower section.

⺮Key radical

Use the highlighted radical in the animation as a visual anchor for remembering the form.

Print and practise

Download a 簡 writing sheet

Get a ready-to-use A4 sheet immediately, or open the full builder to change its grid and guidance.

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Includes the stroke sequence, progressive tracing, and blank writing squares. Generated locally in your browser.

Vocabulary in context

Common words with 簡

Open a word for its full breakdown, or listen before reading the meaning.

No common curriculum words are indexed for this character yet.

Read and listen

Example sentences

Notice where 簡 sits in each complete thought.

Nà lǐ jiǎn zhí bú shì rén zhù de.那裏簡直不是人住的。

You'll find it impossible to live there.

Source: Tatoeba #389469 · CC BY 2.0 FR
Wǒ de jì xìng bù hǎo. wǒ jiǎn zhí bú jì dé tā de míng zì le.我的記性不好。我簡直不記得他的名字了。

My memory failed me. I just could not remember his name.

Source: Tatoeba #780392 · CC BY 2.0 FR
Wǒ jiǎn zhí bú yòng huā qián jiù mǎi dào le.我簡直不用花錢就買到了。

I got it for next to nothing.

Source: Tatoeba #883301 · CC BY 2.0 FR
Wǒ mén yào zuò de hěn jiǎn dān.我們要做的很簡單。

What we had to do was really quite simple.

Source: Tatoeba #6472020 · CC BY 2.0 FR
Shuō de bǐ zuò de jiǎn dān.說的比做的簡單。

Easier said than done.

Source: Tatoeba #1221259 · CC BY 2.0 FR
Nǐ néng yòng gèng jiǎn dān de huà zuò jiě shì má?你能用更簡單的話做解釋嗎?

Would you explain it in simpler terms?

Source: Tatoeba #13109259 · CC BY 2.0 FR
Turn reference into recall

How to study 簡 in context

  1. Say jiǎn, then recall the core meaning: simple, succinct, terse.
  2. Write all 18 strokes while keeping the top-bottom balanced.
  3. Read the complete sentence aloud once, then cover the translation and explain how 簡 works in that context.

Definitions and traditional forms are compiled from Make Me a Hanzi, HSK curriculum data, and CC-CEDICT. Sourced example sentences link to Tatoeba; editorial examples are labeled separately. Review data sources and licenses.