吃 (chī) means "to eat" in English. It is an HSK 1 vocabulary word.

How many strokes does 吃 have?

吃 has 6 strokes. Follow the stroke order diagram above to write it correctly.

Which HSK level is 吃 in?

吃 is part of the HSK 1 word list, so it belongs to the beginner vocabulary band taught in the daily lessons.

HSK 1 word · verb

吃

chī

to eat

Stroke order

See how to write 吃

Watch the animation, then write the character yourself — stroke order matters for speed and recognition.

吃

6 strokes

Example sentence

我吃苹果。

Wǒ chī píngguǒ.

I eat an apple.

More sentences with 吃

我吃米饭。

Wǒ chī mǐfàn.

I eat rice.

苹果很好吃。

Píngguǒ hěn hǎochī.

The apple is tasty.

我已经吃饭了。

Wǒ yǐjīng chī fàn le.

I have already eaten.

你吃过羊肉吗？

Nǐ chī guo yángròu ma?

Have you eaten lamb before?

他连早饭都没吃。

Tā lián zǎofàn dōu méi chī.

He did not even eat breakfast.

Character breakdown

口

mouth

乞

beg

吃

eat

The mouth (口) begs (乞) for food — to eat.

See every word built from the radical 吃 →

Keep exploring

Food and Drink topic

Study 吃 together with related food and drink vocabulary.

Story: Deceive the Heavens to Cross the Ocean

Read 吃 inside a graded Chinese story.

Frequently asked questions about 吃

What does 吃 mean?: 吃 (chī) means "to eat" in English. It is an HSK 1 vocabulary word.
How many strokes does 吃 have?: 吃 has 6 strokes. Follow the stroke order diagram above to write it correctly.
Which HSK level is 吃 in?: 吃 is part of the HSK 1 word list, so it belongs to the beginner vocabulary band taught in the daily lessons.