自
contributes the sense of nose · Kangxi radical 132
contributes the sense of nose, breathing and smelling, and by extension 'self'
自 began as a picture of a nose seen from the front: the outer box is the shape of the nose, and the lines inside are the bridge and the creases of the nostrils, with a small stroke on top for the tip between the eyebrows. That nose is still visible in characters about smelling and breathing — 臭 puts a dog's nose (自) over 犬, 息 puts the nose over the heart 心 for 'breath', and 鼻 stacks 自 on top of another element to write 'nose' itself. Because people here point at their own nose to mean 'me', 自 drifted into meaning 'self', and the same rounded nose-and-face shape shows up in the upper part of 首 'head' and 夏.
自 at a glance
- Meaning
- contributes the sense of nose
- Strokes
- 6
- Characters
- 14
- Role
- Contributes meaning and sound
- Kangxi radical
- 132
Characters with 自 (12 of 14)
HSK 2 · 1
HSK 4 · 1
HSK 5 · 1
Frequently asked questions
What does the component 自 mean?
自 means "contributes the sense of nose". In the characters that contain it, it contributes meaning and sound.
How many Chinese characters contain 自?
14 characters in this dictionary contain 自, including ones at HSK 2, HSK 3, HSK 4, HSK 5.
Is 自 a radical?
Yes — 自 is Kangxi radical 132, one of the 214 traditional indexing radicals used to organise Chinese dictionaries.
How many strokes does 自 have?
自 is written in 6 strokes.