十 (shí) · ten, 10

Meanings

1 ten
2 10

Characters

十

shí

ten

Examples

HSK 1

我有十块钱。

Wǒ yǒu shí kuài qián.

I have ten yuan.

HSK 4

我家离公司大概十公里。

Wǒ jiā lí gōngsī dàgài shí gōnglǐ.

My home is about ten kilometers from the company.

HSK 5

十月一号是国庆节。

Shíyuè yī hào shì Guóqìngjié.

October 1st is National Day.

Tips

history

The character 十 is a cross shape, likely originating from a tally mark representing the number ten.

culture

十全十美 means 'perfect in every way' - literally 'ten complete, ten beautiful'. Ten symbolizes completeness in Chinese culture.

Components

ideograph

十 shí

ten

Abstract symbol: a vertical stroke crossed by a horizontal, marking ten as the meeting point of all four directions - the completed unit. Self-radical indexing 千, 协, 博, 直, 古. Historically the oracle-bone form was just a vertical tally; the horizontal was added later for clarity.

Radical

Ten Kangxi #24

The 十 radical, a vertical-and-horizontal cross representing completeness (Shuowen: 数之具也). A modestly productive Kangxi class indexing 千, 午, 半, 协, 卓, 南, 博 - characters where a cross shape forms the structural anchor regardless of modern meaning.