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.
问wènto ask; to inquire
门gate · ménSound part
口mouth · kǒuMeaning part
口 hints at the meaning (mouth); 门 (mén) hints at the sound. Compare it with wèn.
Memory aidA mouth 口 at the gate 门, with 门 (mén) giving the sound: to ask.
世shìlife
世 is a single shape of 5 strokes. Learn it whole, then watch its stroke order below.
How to write 问世
问 6 strokes · 世 5 strokes
Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.
Stroke order chart for 问世 (wènshì). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.
问世 (wènshì) means “to be published” or “to come out”. It is an HSK 6 word.
Say it wènshì: wèn with a 4th tone, then shì with a 4th 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, 问世 is written 問世. The pronunciation is the same.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type wenshi with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 问世 from the suggestions. Typing wenshi into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
问世 is an HSK 6 word in the 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 written by WillyChina. Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.
问wèn4th tone, falling
