之
之 (zhī) means “of (formal 的)”. It is made of 丶 and has 3 strokes, and is an HSK 4 word in the current exam syllabus (2025).
Break 之 into its parts
What 之 is made of
- 丶 — dot
Origin hint: A foot meaning "to follow"; cursive version of 止 (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
之 stroke order
Example sentences
我们家是三口之家。Wǒmen jiā shì sān kǒu zhī jiā.Ours is a family of three.
这里是有名的鱼米之乡。Zhèlǐ shì yǒumíng de yú mǐ zhī xiāng.This is a famous land of fish and rice.
Words with 之
- 分之fēnzhī(fraction) …分之…, e.g. 三分之一 one third
- 之后zhīhòuafter
- 之间zhījiānbetween
- 之前zhīqiánbefore
- 之一zhīyīone of
- 总之zǒngzhīin short
- 百分之bǎi fēn zhīpercent
- 当务之急dāngwùzhījímost urgent task
- 反之fǎnzhīconversely
- 后顾之忧hòugùzhīyōuworries back home
- 天伦之乐tiānlúnzhīlèfamily happiness
- 之际zhījìat the time of
- 总而言之zǒng'éryánzhīin short
- 之中zhīzhōngamong
Also built with 丶
- 丸wánball
- 为wèifor
- 主zhǔto own
- 义yìright conduct
- 乓pāngused with ping for ping pong
- 兔tùrabbit
- 凡fánany
- 勺sháospoon
- 匆cōnghastily
- 叉chāfork
- 夕xīevening
- 太tàitoo
Quick facts
| Pinyin | zhī |
|---|---|
| Meaning | of (formal 的); used in set phrases |
| Strokes | 3 |
| Radical | 丿 (falling stroke, #4) |
| Pattern | Top–bottom |
| HSK | HSK 4 (exam 2025) · Old HSK 4 |
Questions about 之
What does 之 mean?
之 (zhī) means “of (formal 的); used in set phrases”.
How many strokes does 之 have?
之 has 3 strokes.
What is the radical of 之?
The radical of 之 is 丿 (piě, “falling stroke”), Kangxi radical number 4.
What parts make up 之?
之 is made of 丶 (dot).
Which HSK level is 之?
之 is in HSK 4 (exam 2025) and Old HSK 4.
Learn 之 with its group
It is part of Old HSK 4 · Group 57: a short group with quick checks and spaced repeats.