克
overcome, can
At a glance · 克
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
克字甲骨文象以戈战胜或戴胄之人，本义为胜任、克服；一说象肩物。金文、小篆承之。
What the sketch shows
Origins & notes
克本义为能够、克服、战胜。
Structure
克为象形字，描摹攻克或肩负之形，引申为胜任。
At a glance
Pinyinkè
Radical十
Strokes7
UnicodeU+514B
Character type象形
Theme动作
Six languages, one character
Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.
English
overcome, can
Ke was originally a pictograph of overcoming and came to mean to overcome and can.
Français
vaincre, pouvoir
Ke était à l'origine un pictogramme de victoire et a signifié vaincre et pouvoir.
Español
vencer, poder
Ke era originalmente un pictograma de vencer y pasó a vencer y poder.
العربية
يغلب، يستطيع
كه كان في الأصل رسماً للانتصار ثم عنى الغلبة والاستطاعة.
Русский
преодолевать, мочь
Кэ изначально было пиктограммой победы и стало означать преодолевать и мочь.
Common words
- 克服kè fúovercome
- 克制kè zhìrestrain