HSK 3.0 Level 3 · School

课本 kèběn “textbook” in Chinese

Traditional 課本

What 课本 means

  1. textbook

Measure word 本 běn · 一本课本 yì běn kèběn

How to say 课本

  • Pitch chart of the fourth tone: falls from high to low, 5 to 1 on the five-level scale课kè4th tone, falling
  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale本běn3rd tone, dipping

课本 in a sentence

  1. 这本课本很好。

    Zhè běn kèběn hěn hǎo.

    This is a good textbook.

    Sentence #475474 from Tatoeba

  2. 把你的课本翻到第十页。

    Bǎ nǐ de kèběn fān dào dì shí yè.

    Turn to page ten in your textbook.

    Sentence #333799 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  3. 翻开课本。

    Fānkāi kèběn.

    Open your textbook.

    Sentence #13519227 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

How 课本 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 课 (kè) with each of its parts in a different colour
课kèsubject
  • 讠speech form of 言 · yánMeaning part
  • 果fruit · guǒSound part

讠 hints at the meaning (speech); 果 (guǒ) hints at the sound. Compare it with kè.

The character 本 (běn) with each of its parts in a different colour
本běnroot; stem
  • 木tree · mù
  • 一one · yī

Memory aidA tree 木 with a mark 一 on its roots: root, origin.

How to write 课本

课 10 strokes · 本 5 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

课本 (kèběn) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 课本 (kèběn). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 课本

Words with 课

上课shàngkè · to go to class下课xiàkè · to finish class课kè · class课文kèwén · text (of a lesson)课程kèchéng · course课题kètí · research topic旷课kuàngkè · to skip class

Words with 本

本běn · measure word for books本子běnzi · book笔记本bǐjìběn · notebook本来běnlái · original根本gēnběn · (not) at all本科běnkē · undergraduate course本领běnlǐng · skill本质běnzhì · essence基本jīběn · basic本钱běnqián · capital

More words: School & Work

大学dàxué · university画家huàjiā · painter笔记bǐjì · notes休假xiūjià · to take leave班级bānjí · class (of students)字典zìdiǎn · dictionary (of characters)留学生liúxuéshēng · international student课文kèwén · text (of a lesson)

FAQs

课本 (kèběn) means “textbook”. It is an HSK 3.0 Level 3 word.
Say it kèběn: kè with a 4th tone, then běn with a 3rd tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
In Traditional characters, used in Taiwan and Hong Kong, 课本 is written 課本. The pronunciation is the same.
Use 本 (běn). For example, one textbook is 一本课本 (yì běn kèběn).
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type keben with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 课本 from the suggestions. Typing keben into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
课本 is an HSK 3.0 Level 3 word in the official 2021 syllabus, and it is on our HSK 3.0 Band 5 word list. It is not on the older HSK 2.0 word lists.

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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.