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幸

xìng
adjective #3,566

Meanings

  1. 1 lucky; fortunate
  2. 2 happiness

Examples

很幸运认识你。
Hěn xìngyùn rènshi nǐ.
I'm lucky to know you.
幸福的生活。
Xìngfú de shēnghuó.
A happy life.
幸好你来了。
Xìnghǎo nǐ lái le.
Fortunately you came.

Tips

usage
幸 forms positive words: 幸福 (happiness/blessed), 幸运 (lucky), 幸好 (fortunately), 不幸 (unfortunately). Also in 庆幸 (to feel relieved/grateful).

Components

radical
干 gān
shield; pole
Xinhua indexes 幸 under the 干 radical at the base. Originally the bottom half of a manacle (the device one was lucky to escape), the modern silhouette has converged on a clean 干 shape — pedagogically 'lucky to escape the shield/blow', the dictionary anchor.
semantic
土 tǔ
earth; soil
The top three strokes look like earth/soil but originally pictured the upper half of a manacle. In folk reading the 土 cap is taken as 'standing on solid ground' — being safe — which fits the modern meaning 'fortunate, lucky' even though the etymology is darker.
ideograph
丷 bā
splayed pair of strokes
A small splayed pair of strokes joining the upper and lower halves. Functions as a visual connector between the 土 cap and the 干 base, with no independent meaning of its own.

Stroke Order

幸 xìng