武 wǔ — military, martial · English

武

wǔ

military, martial

At a glance · 武

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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 seen
Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
Regular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

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.

甲骨文、金文从止（脚）从戈，会意持戈行进，本指征伐、军事。《说文》释「止戈为武」。隶楷作「武」。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

「武」本指军事、征伐，引申为勇武、武力。

Structure

会意字，从止从戈，象持戈而行，表示武力。

At a glance

Pinyinwǔ

Radical止

Strokes8

UnicodeU+6B66

Character type会意

Theme军事

Six languages, one character

Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.

English military, martial Military, martial; valor.

Français militaire, martial Militaire, martial; bravoure.

Español militar, marcial Militar, marcial; valentía.

العربية عسكري، حربي عسكري أو حربي أو شجاعة.

Русский военный, мужественный Военный, ратный; доблесть.

Common words

武术wǔ shùmartial art
武器wǔ qìweapon

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