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中 — within; among; in

within; among; in; middle; center; while; during; OK; all right

Pinyin
zhōng · zhòng · Zhōng
Strokes
4
HSK level
HSK 1
Handwriting
required

This character has more than one reading — zhōng, zhòng, Zhōng — and the pronunciation depends on the word it appears in. The list below gives the syllabus reading for each word.

How to write 中: 4 strokes

Each cell adds one stroke to the previous ones, with the new stroke in red. Stroke order is not decoration: it sets the proportions of the character and makes handwriting legible to a reader. This character is on the HSK handwriting list, so the exam expects you to write it, not only recognise it.

中 — 4 strokes, in writing order from left to right.

Build a printable practice sheet with 中

Words with 中 in the HSK syllabus: 48

Every word in the official 2026 syllabus that contains this character, with the level it is introduced at. Learning a character pays off through these: each one combines with the characters you already know.

  1. 中国ZhōngguóChinaHSK 1
  2. 中文ZhōngwénChinese languageHSK 1
  3. 中午zhōngwǔnoon; middayHSK 1
  4. 中学zhōngxuémiddle schoolHSK 1
  5. 中学生zhōngxuéshēngmiddle-school student; high school studentHSK 1
  6. 高中gāozhōngsenior high schoolHSK 2
  7. 初中chūzhōngjunior high schoolHSK 3
  8. 中zhōngto hit; to be struck by; to winHSK 3
  9. 中间zhōngjiānthe middle; the insideHSK 3
  10. 从中cóngzhōngfrom among them; from itHSK 4
  11. 期中qīzhōnginterim; midtermHSK 4
  12. 其中qízhōngamong; in; included among theseHSK 4
  13. 之中zhīzhōnginside; among; in the midst of; duringHSK 4
  14. 中餐zhōngcānlunch; Chinese meal; Chinese foodHSK 4
  15. 中年zhōngniánmiddle ageHSK 4
  16. 当中dāngzhōngamong; in the middle; in the centerHSK 5
  17. 集中jízhōngto concentrate; to centralize; to focus; centralizedHSK 5
  18. 空中kōngzhōngin the sky; in the airHSK 5
  19. 中华ZhōnghuáZhonghua, historical and cultural term for China, often used to denote Chinese civilization and identityHSK 5
  20. 中华民族Zhōnghuá Mínzúthe Chinese nation; the Chinese peopleHSK 5
  21. 中级zhōngjímiddle levelHSK 5
  22. 中介zhōngjièto act as intermediary; to link; intermediateHSK 5
  23. 中期zhōngqīmiddle; medium-termHSK 5
  24. 中外zhōngwàiSino-foreign; Chinese-foreign; home and abroadHSK 5
  25. 中心zhōngxīncenter; heart; coreHSK 5
  26. 中药zhōngyàotraditional Chinese medicineHSK 5
  27. 中医zhōngyītraditional Chinese medical scienceHSK 5
  28. 看中kànzhòngto have a preference for; to fancyHSK 6
  29. 中等zhōngděngmediumHSK 6
  30. 中断zhōngduànto cut short; to break off; to discontinueHSK 6
  31. 中旬zhōngxúnmiddle third of a monthHSK 6
  32. 中央zhōngyāngcentral; middle; center; central authoritiesHSK 6
  33. 中zhòngto hit; to be struck by; to winHSK 6
  34. 中毒zhòngdúto be poisonedHSK 6
  35. 中奖zhòngjiǎngto win a prizeHSK 6
  36. 中暑zhòngshǔto suffer heat exhaustion; sunstroke; heatstrokeHSK 6
  37. 暗中ànzhōngin the dark; in secret; on the sly; surreptitiouslyHSK 7–9
  38. 古今中外gǔjīn-zhōngwàiat all times and in all placesHSK 7–9
  39. 急中生智jízhōng-shēngzhìquick witted in an emergencyHSK 7–9
  40. 美中不足měizhōng-bùzúeverything is fine except for one small defect; the fly in the ointmentHSK 7–9

And 8 more across the higher levels — the full lists are on the level pages.

Glosses come from CC-CEDICT, used under CC BY-SA 4.0, and are the dictionary’s first sense rather than a translation chosen for context.