好 (hǎo) Chinese Character: good, well

Chinese character story: Woman and Child Make “Good”

好 (hǎo) combines 女, “woman,” and 子, “child.” Ancient dictionaries used this pairing to express something pleasing or good. For modern learners, the important visual fact is simple: 女 stands on the left, 子 on the right, and together they make one of the first words you learn — 你好, “hello.”

Chinese character origin and etymology

好 is documented as a character built from meaningful or phonetic parts. Its earlier written forms gradually became the regular-script shape used today.

In modern simplified Chinese, 好 is written with 6 strokes. This lesson separates documented shape history from the memory story so learners do not mistake a mnemonic for a historical claim. 好 contains 女 and 子. These parts act like clues: a component may suggest a meaning category, a pronunciation, or simply preserve part of the character's historical structure.

Chinese character stroke order and structure

好 is written with 6 strokes. Learn the complete stroke sequence in the interactive lesson, then write the character from memory before checking your answer.

• 女 — woman
• 子 — child

Common usage and sentence patterns

The examples below show 好 in complete beginner-friendly sentences. Read each sentence aloud, notice where the character appears, and then replace one noun or number to create a new sentence of your own.

Learning tips for 好

Learn the reading as one unit: hǎo, with the third tone: falling then rising. Avoid memorizing the letters without the tone mark. Say the syllable, recall the English meaning “good, well,” and write the 6 strokes from memory.

Because 好 contains reusable components, identify those clues before memorizing the whole shape. Compare it with 女 (nǚ, woman — the left component); 子 (zǐ, child — the right component); 妈 (mā, mother — woman (女) + horse (马)). Similar characters are easier to remember when their different parts and meanings are studied side by side.

Quick review checklist

• Can you recognize 好 without pinyin?
• Can you say hǎo with the correct tone and explain “good, well”?
• Can you write all 6 strokes in order?
• Can you use 好 in one short sentence?

Related characters

• 女 (nǚ) — woman — the left component
• 子 (zǐ) — child — the right component
• 妈 (mā) — mother — woman (女) + horse (马)

Continue learning Chinese characters

Use the Chinese radicals and components guide to understand reusable parts, the stroke order guide to improve handwriting, and the HSK 1 character overview to choose your next beginner lesson.

Sources and editorial note

HanziStory separates documented character history from modern memory stories. Historical-form images are shown only when a matching source file is available; missing stages are skipped rather than invented. Stroke practice uses HanziWriter data.

Last updated: August 12, 2026. Read our sources, editorial method, and correction policy.