早(zǎo)

HSK 16 strokes

early

Print a 早 worksheet PDFPractice writing 早

Stroke order animation

Character information

Pinyin
zǎo
Meaning
early; morning; Good morning!; long ago; prematurely
Strokes
6
HSK level
HSK 1
Traditional
Same

Origin & structure

Where 早 comes from and how its parts fit together.

Ideograph⿱日十

The first rays 十 of the sun 日

A combination of parts whose meanings add up to the whole.

Made of

日rì十shí

Parts are arranged top to bottom.

How to write 早 step by step

6 strokes — each frame adds one stroke, shown in dark ink over the lighter ones.

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6

Words with 早

Common words using 早 — tap any character to open its stroke-order page.

zǎo早shàng上
HSK 1

early morning

Open 早上 page →
zǎo早jiù就
HSK 2

already at an earlier time

Open 早就 page →
zǎo早yǐ已
HSK 3

for a long time; long since

Open 早已 page →
yī一zǎo早
HSK 7-9

early in the morning; at dawn

Open 一早 page →
jǐn尽zǎo早
HSK 7-9

as early as possible

Open 尽早 page →
yī一dà大zǎo早
HSK 7-9

at dawn

Open 一大早 page →
jí及zǎo早
HSK 7-9

at the earliest possible time; as soon as possible

Open 及早 page →
cóng从zǎo早dào到wǎn晚
HSK 7-9

from morning till night

Open 从早到晚 page →

Related characters

More HSK 1 characters

一七三上下不东两

From 早’s common words

上就已一尽大及从

Ready to master 早?

Trace 早 stroke by stroke in the online practice tool, or turn it into a printable worksheet PDF with Tianzige practice grids, pinyin, and stroke-order breakdowns.

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