How to write 原 (yuán) — Stroke Order, Radical & Practice
Pronunciation & meaning
Pronounced .
- source
- origin
- beginning
Stroke Order & Practice
Click Animate to see the correct stroke order, then Practice to trace it yourself.
Decomposition
原 breaks down into 2 components arranged as Upper-left envelops Inner. Recognizing the components makes the character easier to remember and write.
Radical
The radical of 原 is 厂 — meaning cliff. Radicals are the indexing components used in Chinese dictionaries; they often hint at a character's broad meaning category.
Other HSK 4 characters that share this radical: 压厂厕厨厚厉厅厌质.
How the character is built
原 is a phono-semantic compound. The semantic component 厂 (cliff) carries the meaning, while the phonetic component 泉 originally indicated the sound.
HSK 4 Words Containing 原
Seen in the Real Exams / 真题例句
原 appears in 51 questions across the 19 mock & official HSK 4 exams on this site. Real exam sentences using it:
Tasks Featuring 原 / 相关任务
Words containing 原 appear in these official HSK 4 task scenarios — study the character in context:
FAQ
What does 原 mean in Chinese?
原 (yuán) means source, origin, beginning. It is one of the 150 characters required for the HSK 4 writing section.
How many strokes does 原 have?
原 is written in 10 strokes. Use the practice tool above to see the correct stroke order and trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 原?
The radical of 原 is 厂 (cliff). Other HSK 4 characters with the same radical include 压, 厂, 厕, 厨, 厚.
What is the pinyin for 原?
原 is pronounced yuán.
What HSK 4 words use 原?
In our HSK 4 vocabulary, 原 appears in 3 words, including 原来 (yuánlái), 原谅 (yuánliàng), 原因 (yuányīn). See the full list above.