Topics · Primary Chinese · Character Discrimination (辨字)
辨字: telling look-alike characters apart
已 and 己. 未 and 末. 大 and 犬. One stroke apart, and different words. The paper tests whether you see the stroke — and the way to see it is to know what each half of the character is doing.
- 83 exam papers analysed
- appears in 67% of P2 Chinese papers
- ~3 min read
01 The radical says what it is about
Most Chinese characters have two parts: a 部首 that hints at the meaning, and the rest, which usually hints at the sound.
So a character with 氵 has to do with water — 河, 海, 洗. One with 忄 has to do with feeling — 快, 情, 怕. One with 讠 has to do with speech — 说, 语, 请.
When two options look alike, look at the radical first. It usually settles which one belongs in the sentence, without your having to remember the character at all.
| 部首 | Means | Characters |
|---|---|---|
| 氵 | water | 河, 海, 洗, 江 |
| 忄 | feeling | 快, 怕, 情, 忙 |
| 讠 | speech | 说, 请, 语, 谢 |
| 木 | wood, trees | 树, 林, 桌, 板 |
| 扌 | hand, doing | 打, 拿, 提, 找 |
| 艹 | plants | 花, 草, 菜, 苦 |
02 The pairs that get tested
A small set of look-alikes appears again and again. Learning to see the difference in these is most of the topic.
| Pair | Difference | How to remember |
|---|---|---|
| 已 / 己 | the top stroke closes or does not | 已经 already is closed; 自己 self is open |
| 未 / 末 | which crossbar is longer | 末 has the long one on top — the end |
| 大 / 犬 | the extra dot | 犬 is a dog, and the dot is its ear |
| 日 / 曰 | how wide it is | 日 sun is tall; 曰 to say is wide |
| 土 / 士 | which crossbar is longer | 土 earth is wide at the bottom |
| 天 / 夫 | whether the top stroke sticks out | 夫 sticks out above |
03 Sound-alikes are the other half
The second kind of question gives characters that sound the same and asks which belongs in the sentence.
在 and 再. 在 is at or in — 我在家. 再 is again — 再见, 再来一次.
的 / 地 / 得. 的 before a noun (我的书), 地 before a verb (慢慢地走), 得 after a verb (跑得快).
做 and 作. 做 for concrete doing — 做功课; 作 in fixed words — 作文, 工作.
Use the sentence, not the sound. They sound identical, so the only way through is what the sentence needs.
04 Writing them
Stroke order matters where the paper asks for it, and it also makes the character come out the right shape.
Count the strokes when two options differ by one. It is slower than looking, and it is right.
Write it in a square. Chinese characters are written to fill a square, and a character squeezed sideways is where 已 turns into 己.
When unsure, use a word you can write. In a composition a simpler correct character always beats a harder wrong one.
05 How to say them
These are words most children have never said out loud, and a word you cannot say is a word you avoid using. The respelling is Hanyu Pinyin, with the tone marked over the vowel. Tap the speaker to hear it.
- 辨字saybiàn zì
Telling characters apart — the question type built on look-alikes and sound-alikes.
- 部首saybù shǒu
The radical, the part of a character hinting at its meaning: 氵 water, 忄 feeling.
- 笔画saybǐ huà
A stroke. Look-alike pairs usually differ by exactly one.
- 笔顺saybǐ shùn
Stroke order — the sequence the strokes are written in.
- 同音字saytóng yīn zì
Characters that sound the same but mean different things, such as 在 and 再.
- 形近字sayxíng jìn zì
Characters that look nearly the same, such as 已 and 己.
06 What each level is tested on
The same topic, asked differently as it goes up. The percentage is the share of papers at that level in which it appears.
- P2
Common radicals, and telling apart the simplest look-alike pairs.
Practise P2 Chinese Character Discrimination (辨字) — 10 questions →67% of P2 Chinese papers
- P3
Sound-alike characters chosen by what the sentence needs, and stroke counting.
Practise P3 Chinese Character Discrimination (辨字) — 8 questions → Practise P3 Higher Chinese Character Discrimination (辨字) — 8 questions →24% of P3 Chinese papers
59% of P3 Higher Chinese papers
- P4
的, 地 and 得, and look-alikes inside longer sentences.
Practise P4 Chinese Character Discrimination (辨字) — 8 questions → Practise P4 Higher Chinese Character Discrimination (辨字) — 8 questions →33% of P4 Chinese papers
35% of P4 Higher Chinese papers
07 Mistakes worth knowing about
Each of these is wrong. Decide why before you open it.
“已 and 己 are the same character written differently.”
Different characters. 已经 means already; 自己 means oneself. The top stroke closes on one and not the other.
“再见 — I wrote 在见.”
在 is at or in; 再 is again. 再见 is see you again.
“慢慢的走.”
地 before a verb: 慢慢地走. 的 goes before a noun.
“I could not remember the character so I guessed between the two.”
Look at the radical. It tells you what the character is about, which usually rules one out.
“I wrote the strokes in whatever order.”
Stroke order is asked about directly, and writing in the taught order is what makes the character come out the right shape.
Now try it
26 questions across 3 levels, marked as you go with the working shown.