In this Skritter deck, we’ll explore characters that look very similar but differ by just an extra stroke or two, which changes the meaning entirely. There are 8 sections, each categorized by the calligraphy stroke type. Within each section, you will see 2-3 characters in a row that differ in subtle ways.
If you want to learn more about calligraphy brush strokes, check out the video deck “Chinese Stroke Names” and “Chinese Stroke Order”. This deck is designed to challenge your recognition of Chinese characters, and highlights how using mnemonics might help differentiate between similar looking characters.
Similar characters that contain a single stroke difference
| 王 | 王 | wang2, wang4 | king; (common surname) (Kangxi radical 96, variant) |
| 玉 | 玉 | yu4 | jade (Kangxi radical 96) |
| 主 | 主 | zhu3 | owner; host; master |
| 大 | 大 | da4, dai4 | big; large; great (Kangxi radical 37) |
| 太 | 太 | tai4 | too (much); excessively; highest; greatest |
| 犬 | 犬 | quan3 | dog (Kangxi radical 94) |
| 免 | 免 | mian3 | exempt; remove; avoid |
| 兔 | 兔 | tu4 | rabbit; hare; bunny |
| 九 | 九 | jiu3 | nine |
| 丸 | 丸 | wan2 | ball; pill; pellet |
| 今 | 今 | jin1 | now; at present; today; modern |
| 令 | 令 | ling4, ling3 | make or cause to be; to order; command;(mw: ream of paper) |
| 未 | 未 | wei4 | not yet; did not; have not (8th Earthly Branch) |
| 朱 | 朱 | zhu1 | vermilion; cinnabar; surname Zhu |
| 十 | 十 | shi2 | ten (Kangxi radical 24) |
| 千 | 千 | qian1 | thousand |
| 又 | 又 | you4 | (once) again; also; both (Kangxi radical 29) |
| 叉 | 叉 | cha1, cha3, cha4 | fork; intersection;part to form a fork;(劈~) do the splits |
| 刀 | 刀 | dao1 | knife; blade (Kangxi radical 18) |
| 刃 | 刃 | ren4 | blade; knife edge |
Similar characters that contain TWO strokes that are different
| 木 | 木 | mu4 | tree; wood (Kangxi radical 75) |
| 米 | 米 | mi3 | (husked) rice; meter (Kangxi radical 119) |
| 直 | 直 | zhi2 | straight; vertical; frank; directly; continuously |
| 真 | 真 | zhen1 | real; true; genuine |
| 兄 | 兄 | xiong1 | elder brother |
| 兑 | 兌 | dui4 | exchange; to convert; to add (liquid); to blend |
| 千 | 千 | qian1 | thousand |
| 平 | 平 | ping2 | flat; level; equal; ordinary |
| 束 | 束 | shu4 | to tie; to bind; restrain; (mw for bunches, bundles, bouquets, etc.) |
| 柬 | 柬 | jian3 | card; letter; select |
