shū

abbr. for 書經|书经[Shu1 jing1]

book; letter; document; CL:本[ben3],冊|册[ce4],部[bu4]; to write

a picture of 书 → a hand holding a brush, writing

The ancient form of 书 depicted a hand grasping a writing brush with a stroke below it, capturing the act of writing itself. Over time the form simplified, but the character still means both the act of writing and the object it produces — a book or document.

A vertical strokeSemantic

Words with 书

K书

k shū

(Tw) to cram; to study (from Taiwanese 齧書, Tai-lo pr. [khè-su], lit. to gnaw a book, similar to Mandarin 啃書|啃书[ken3 shu1])

闲书

xián shū

light reading

隶书

lì shū

clerical script; official script (Chinese calligraphic style)

通书

tōng shū

almanac

通知书

tōng zhī shū

written notice

连书

lián shū

to write without lifting one's pen from the paper

遗书

yí shū

posthumous writing

还书

huán shū

return books

那鸿书

nà hóng shū

Book of Nahum

郢书燕说

yǐng shū yān shuō

lit. Ying writes a letter and Yan reads it

医书

yī shū

medical book

钉书机

dìng shū jī

stapler

More characters with 丨