chū ㄔㄨ co1 HSK 3 進階級 · Level 3 高階級 · Level 4

  • (bound form) at first; initially
  • (bound form) first; early
  • (bound form) (in lunar calendar dates, before numerals 1–10) days 1 to 10 of a month, as in 初三 chū sān ㄔㄨ ㄙㄢ "the third"

Stroke order

Practice writing

Draw 初 (1 of 1) — stroke by stroke.

Draw each stroke of the character in order using your mouse or finger. A hint appears after three misses.

Character breakdown

Example sentences

  • 初次見面。 How do you do?
  • 她大病初愈。 She recovered from her long illness.
  • 她是我的初恋。 She's my first love.
  • 這是我的初戀。 This is my first love.
  • 这不是我的初衷。 That wasn't my intention.

Sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY)