书
book
At a glance · 书
Evolution of the glyph
Five stages, from a sketch of the real object to regular script — tap a stage, drag the timeline, or play the animation.
Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seenOracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCESeal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCEClerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CERegular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE
⚠ Some ancient forms are not attested：oracle bone form、seal script form。No excavated oracle bone / seal artifact is attested for this character yet; we leave it blank rather than fabricate.
「书」繁体「書」从聿从者，金文象以笔写字，小篆承之。
What the sketch shows
Origins & notes
「书」本义为书写、文字，引申书籍、书信、书法。
Structure
从聿、从者（或曰），会意字，聿为笔，本为书写、简册。简作书。
At a glance
Pinyinshū
Radical乙
Strokes4
UnicodeU+4E66
Character type会意
Theme器物
Six languages, one character
Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.
English
book
book, letter, document; writings
Français
livre / écrire
Livre, écrire. «漆书壁经» : les écrits.
Español
libro / escribir
Libro, escribir. «漆书壁经»: los escritos.
العربية
كتاب / يكتب
كتاب، يكتب. «漆书壁经»: الكتابات.
Русский
книга / писать
Книга, писать. «漆书壁经»: писания.
Common words
- 书写shū xiěwrite
- 书shūbook