书 — book; letter; document
book; letter; document; to write
- Pinyin
- shū · Shū
- Strokes
- 4
- HSK level
- HSK 1
- Handwriting
- required
This character has more than one reading — shū, Shū — and the pronunciation depends on the word it appears in. The list below gives the syllabus reading for each word.
How to write 书: 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.
Words with 书 in the HSK syllabus: 22
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.
- 读书dúshūto read a book; to study; to attend schoolHSK 1
- 书shūbook; letter; document; to writeHSK 1
- 书店shūdiànbookstoreHSK 1
- 书包shūbāoschoolbag; satchel; bookbagHSK 2
- 电子书diànzǐshūelectronic book; e-book; e-book readerHSK 3
- 图书馆túshūguǎnlibraryHSK 3
- 说明书shuōmíngshūmanual; directions; synopsis; specificationHSK 4
- 秘书mìshūsecretaryHSK 5
- 书法shūfǎcalligraphy; handwriting; penmanshipHSK 5
- 书房shūfángstudy; studioHSK 5
- 书架shūjiàbookshelfHSK 5
- 图书túshūbooksHSK 5
- 证书zhèngshūcredentials; certificateHSK 5
- 念书niànshūto read; to study; to attend schoolHSK 6
- 书画shūhuàpainting and calligraphyHSK 6
- 书籍shūjíbooks; worksHSK 6
- 书面shūmiànin writing; writtenHSK 6
- 书写shūxiěto writeHSK 6
- 百科全书bǎikē quánshūencyclopediaHSK 7–9
- 教科书jiàokēshūtextbookHSK 7–9
- 琴棋书画qín-qí-shū-huàthe four arts of the Chinese scholar; the accomplishments of a well-educated personHSK 7–9
- 书记shūjìsecretary; clerk; scribeHSK 7–9
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.