鱼
fish
HSK level
- Pinyin
- yú
- Part of speech
- noun
- Level
- HSK 2
- Strokes
- 8
- Register
- neutral
- Measure word
- 条 / 块
Stroke order for 鱼
鱼 is written with 8 strokes. The animation replays automatically.
What does 鱼 mean?
鱼 (yú) is the Chinese word for 'fish,' covering both the live animal and the cooked dish.
Unlike English, Chinese does not distinguish between 'a fish' and 'fish' (the food) — context tells you which: 我吃鱼 ('I eat fish' — food) vs 我有一条鱼 ('I have a fish' — the animal). The standard measure word is 条 (tiáo) for whole fish: 一条鱼 ('one fish').
Culturally, 鱼 is loaded with meaning — it sounds identical to 余 (yú, 'surplus / abundance'), so fish is the centerpiece of New Year's dinner, especially in the saying 年年有余 ('may you have abundance every year'). At a Chinese New Year table, the fish is often served whole and not finished, symbolically leaving 'surplus' for the coming year.
Example sentences
我喜欢吃鱼。
Wǒ xǐhuan chī yú.
I like eating fish.
spoken
桌子上有一条大鱼。
Zhuōzi shàng yǒu yì tiáo dà yú.
There's a big fish on the table.
neutral
爸爸周末喜欢去钓鱼。
Bàba zhōumò xǐhuan qù diào yú.
Dad likes to go fishing on weekends.
spoken
中国人过年的时候喜欢吃鱼。
Zhōngguó rén guò nián de shíhou xǐhuan chī yú.
Chinese people like to eat fish during New Year.
neutral
Common phrases with 鱼
Don't confuse 鱼 with
Same pinyin. 渔 means 'fishing (as an industry)' — it has the water radical 氵 added on the left. 渔民 ('fisherman'), 渔业 ('fishing industry'). 鱼 is the fish itself.
Identical pinyin and tone. 余 means 'surplus / remainder' and is the source of the New Year fish-luck pun. Different character, used in compounds like 多余 ('extra').
Looks roughly similar at small sizes. 雨 means 'rain' (third tone), 鱼 means 'fish' (second tone). Watch the tone.
FAQ
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