Character: 谢 (xiè) to thank

谢
Pinyin xiè
Meaning to thank; to wither; to decline
Radical 讠（言） 繁體字 謝
Two writing patterns can be found in the character 谢 (xiè) to thank: 讠, highlighted in red; and 寸, highlighted in yellow 讠
寸

writing patterns, not components

Chinese character phono-semantic compoundcategory: phono-semantic compound

Chinese character left center right structurestructure: left center right

12stroke count

HSK 1

Stroke order of the Chinese character 谢 (xiè) to thank. There are 12 strokes, and the character is first written on the left, then center and right.

Breakdown

谢 (xiè) consists of the radical 讠, a simplification of 言 (yán) “speech,” on the left, and the phonetic component 射 (shè) “to shoot” on the right. It is a polite word that is often used to express gratitude, usually translated as “to thank,” or to decline.

xiè
谢
to thank
讠
speech		 yì
议
to discuss		 píng
评
to comment
shè
射
to shoot

Used as a morpheme/word

Wordlist

  • HSK 1: 谢谢 (xièxie) thanks
  • HSK 4: 感谢 (gǎnxiè) grateful
  • HSK 6: 谢绝 (xièjué) to refuse politely
  • HSK 6: 新陈代谢 (xīnchéndàixiè) metabolism (biology)
  • Advanced: 凋谢 (diāoxiè) to wither

How to pronounce

First, have the middle of your tongue bowed and raised towards the roof, then say “s’yeah.”

4th Pinyin Yale IPA
Initial x- sy [ɕ]
Final -ie ye [ɪe]

Chinese character practice sheet

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