主

zhǔ

Pinyin
zhǔ
Pinyin (Plain)
zhu
Tone
3
Strokes
5
Radical
丶
Readings
zhǔzhuTone: 3owner; master; host; individual or party concerned; God; Lord; main; to indicate or signify; trump card (in card games)Order: 0Primary
Stroke Order Code
Speed
Stroke Order Data
["M 476 759 Q 504 734 536 702 Q 554 686 575 686 Q 590 687 596 705 Q 602 724 590 764 Q 578 798 469 823 Q 448 827 440 824 Q 433 818 436 801 Q 440 786 476 759 Z", "M 536 539 Q 605 552 679 565 Q 748 578 758 588 Q 768 597 763 606 Q 756 619 723 629 Q 693 635 591 606 Q 432 564 289 553 Q 247 549 276 528 Q 318 504 404 515 Q 437 521 474 528 L 536 539 Z", "M 549 308 Q 696 338 702 343 Q 712 350 707 360 Q 700 372 670 380 Q 643 386 552 358 L 488 342 Q 482 342 476 340 Q 400 324 311 317 Q 274 313 300 294 Q 337 267 399 281 Q 442 288 488 296 L 549 308 Z", "M 541 114 Q 545 219 549 308 L 552 358 Q 553 440 559 485 Q 569 515 536 539 C 513 558 465 556 474 528 Q 489 497 488 342 L 488 296 Q 487 220 486 108 C 486 78 540 84 541 114 Z", "M 486 108 Q 365 99 302 91 Q 229 81 121 82 Q 105 82 104 69 Q 103 56 123 39 Q 142 24 177 11 Q 189 7 209 15 Q 255 30 410 51 Q 465 58 528 63 Q 585 66 638 70 Q 773 83 931 66 Q 958 62 965 72 Q 974 87 960 100 Q 927 131 879 154 Q 863 161 833 153 Q 760 138 686 129 Q 598 122 541 114 L 486 108 Z"]
Meaning
The character “主” basically means “master” or “owner,” the person or thing that is in charge or at the center (as in host vs. guest, or owner of a house). It is also used in words meaning “main” or “primary,” like “main idea” (主题) or “mainly” (主要).
Metadata
Locale: en
Cached At: 3/26/2026, 9:23:51 AM

Usage

The character **主 (zhǔ)** basically means “master,” “owner,” or “main.” Learners first meet it in high‑frequency words like **主人** (owner/host), **主意** (idea), and **主要** (main, major). It often marks something as primary or in charge, as in **主角** (main character), **主任** (director, person in charge), and **主办** (to sponsor, to host an event). In formal or written contexts, it also appears in words like **主动** (to take the initiative) and **主张** (to advocate, viewpoint), keeping that core sense of being the active or leading side. Another very common pattern is **主 + noun** meaning “main/primary [noun],” such as **主食** (staple food), **主题** (theme, topic), and **主要原因** (main reason). In grammar, learners see it in **主语** (subject of a sentence) and **主谓结构** (subject–predicate structure). In religious or philosophical contexts, 主 can refer to “the Lord” or a deity (especially in Christian contexts), but most everyday usage revolves around the ideas of “main,” “in charge,” or “owner.”

Handwriting Notes

主 is visually quite simple in handwriting: it’s built around a vertical backbone with a short horizontal stroke near the top and a slightly longer one in the middle, and a small dot above everything. In neat handwriting, the vertical line usually runs straight and slightly longer than the horizontals, and the dot is centered above the upper stroke. The middle horizontal often appears clearly longer than the top one, which helps distinguish 主 from similar characters. In quick or casual writing, the dot can become more of a short flick, the vertical line may slant a bit, and the horizontals may curve or taper, but the basic “vertical with two bars and a top dot” structure is kept so readers can identify it easily. AI-based handwriting recognition systems are trained to handle exactly this kind of variation in size, slant, stroke thickness, and small distortions when recognizing 主 on touchscreens or from scanned handwritten text.

Description

“主” is a common Chinese character meaning “master,” “host,” or “lord,” and can also mean “to take charge of” or “to be responsible for.” It is frequently used in words like 主人 (host; owner), 主要 (main; primary), and 主管 (person in charge).

Common Words

  • 主要zhǔyàomain; primary; major
  • 主人zhǔrénhost; master; owner
  • 主意zhǔyiidea; plan
  • 主任zhǔrèndirector; head; chief
  • 主张zhǔzhāngview; position; advocacy
  • 主角zhǔjuéleading role; protagonist
  • 主角zhǔjiǎoleading role; protagonist (also pronounced this way)
  • 主持zhǔchíto host; to preside over; to chair
  • 主动zhǔdòngactive; voluntary; to take the initiative
  • 主观zhǔguānsubjective
  • 主食zhǔshístaple food
  • 主角zhǔjiǎomain character; leading role (variant pronunciation)
  • 主权zhǔquánsovereignty
  • 主流zhǔliúmainstream; principal current
  • 主任医师zhǔrèn yīshīchief physician
  • 主修zhǔxiūto major in (a subject)
  • 主办zhǔbànto sponsor; to organize (an event)
  • 主导zhǔdǎoto lead; leading; dominant
  • 主线zhǔxiànmain thread; main storyline
  • 主权国家zhǔquán guójiāsovereign state
  • 党员主体dǎngyuán zhǔtǐthe main body of party members (political context)
  • 主楼zhǔlóumain building
  • 主场zhǔchǎnghome field; home court
  • 主办方zhǔbànfāngorganizer; sponsoring party
  • 主客观zhǔ-kèguānsubjective and objective
  • 主页面zhǔ yèmiànmain page; home page (of a website or app)
  • 主播zhǔbōanchor; presenter; streamer
  • 主宰zhǔzǎito dominate; to control; to rule
  • 主题zhǔtítheme; subject; topic
  • 主权平等zhǔquán píngděngsovereign equality
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