ZHIZHI 知止 · LEARN CHINESE DAILY
课
class / lesson
kè
10 strokes · 讠 (speech radical) + 果 (fruit) — speech that bears fruit · HSK 2
课 in traditional Chinese
課
What 课 is made of
讠 + 果 = 课
讠speech (side form)
Where 课 comes from
课 (traditional 課) pairs speech 讠 with 果 (fruit, also the sound): originally to examine and assess — talk that must produce results. Assessment became curriculum: the lesson.
课 in Chinese culture
课 schedules student life: 上课 (class begins — also 'attend class'), 下课 (class dismissed — the two most emotionally opposite phrases in any school), 课本 (textbook), 功课 (homework). China's after-school 补课 (supplementary classes) culture is legendary. This app is your daily 汉字课 — one lesson, one character, speech bearing fruit.
Example
上课 shàngkè — to attend class / class begins
我们八点上课。
Wǒmen bā diǎn shàngkè.
We have class at eight.
How to remember it
Speech 讠 that must bear fruit 果 — the LESSON.
下课! (class dismissed) doubles as sports slang for firing a coach — the ultimate 'school's out'.
Same sound, different tones
棵
1st kē
(measure for trees)
Words unlocked by 课
上课 shàngkè
attend class
下课 xiàkè
class dismissed
课本 kèběn
textbook
Related characters
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One character a morning · 455-character HSK library · iOS