贼 Stroke Order — How to Write 贼
贼 is written in 10 strokes, following the standard Chinese stroke order. Start from the radical 贝, then complete the remaining strokes.
Stroke order matters in Chinese: it keeps the character balanced, and it is how dictionaries and handwriting input methods expect a character to be written.
贼 Radical and Character Components
贼 is a phono-semantic compound: 戎 (weapons) carries the meaning, while 贝 indicates the sound.
Radical: 贝 + 6 more strokes
贼 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- zéi
Meanings of 贼 in Chinese
1
zéi贼
A person who steals things; a thief or robber.
那个贼人被警察抓住了。
That thief was caught by the police.
Refers to a person harmful to the people or society, such as a villain, bandit, or criminal.
警方正在追捕那些盗贼。
The police are currently pursuing those thieves.
To harm, injure; also refers to a great evil or scourge, something that causes significant damage or disruption.
过度的压力会戕贼身心健康。
Excessive stress can severely damage physical and mental health.
Evil, dishonest, malicious (often used in fixed phrases like 'zéi xīn bù sǐ' meaning 'to harbor evil intentions').
他虽然嘴上答应了，但我看他还是贼心不死
Although he agreed verbally, I can see he still harbors evil intentions.
sly; cunning; sneaky, often used to describe a person's shifty or mischievous look/behavior.
他贼溜溜地看了一眼，好像在找什么东西。
He cast a sly glance, as if looking for something.
As an adverb, it means 'very' or 'really', used to intensify the degree of an adjective or verb.
今天天气贼冷。
The weather is really cold today.
Common Words and Phrases with 贼
1
A thieves' hideout or a robber's den.
那个偏僻的废弃农场被发现是附近盗贼的贼巢。
That remote abandoned farm was discovered to be the thieves' den for the local rogues.
2
Literally 'pirate ship'; figuratively, a criminal organization or gang, often implying being drawn into illicit activities.
小王因为贪图小利，结果被骗子拉上了贼船，最终身陷囹圄
Xiao Wang, tempted by minor profits, was consequently pulled into a criminal enterprise by con artists and ultimately found himself in prison.
3
A subtle and potentially harmful draft, often coming from a crack or crevice.
晚上睡觉时，一定要关好窗户，小心贼风侵袭，容易着凉
When sleeping at night, make sure to close the windows properly, as insidious drafts can easily lead to catching a cold.
4
A thief or scoundrel, often used colloquially.
那个贼骨头又在街上鬼鬼祟祟地晃悠，肯定没安好心。
That scoundrel is loitering suspiciously on the street again, surely up to no good.
5
A thief crying 'stop thief', meaning the culprit falsely accuses others to deflect blame.
他明明自己迟到了，却倒打一耙，指责别人耽误了他的时间，真是贼喊捉贼
He was clearly late himself, yet he turned the tables and accused others of delaying him, which is a classic case of a thief crying 'stop thief!'.
6
Sly, shifty, or furtive; describing a person's stealthy and suspicious demeanor, often characterized by looking around nervously as if doing something dishonest.
他那双贼溜溜的眼睛，总是四处打量，让人觉得他好像有什么秘密。
His shifty eyes were always looking around, making people feel as if he had some secret.
7
Having a shifty, sly, or furtive look, often suggesting cunning or dishonesty.
那个小贩贼眉溜眼地看着周围，好像在盘算着什么坏主意。
The peddler, with a shifty and cunning look, glanced around, seemingly plotting something sly.
8
An informal and emphatic term meaning 'extremely' or 'to death,' often used to describe intense negative feelings like fatigue or annoyance.
这天气贼死热，都不想出门了。
This weather is unbearably hot; I don't even want to go out.
9
behaving stealthily like a thief
那个小偷贼头贼脑地在商店里转悠，引起了店员的注意。
The thief was lurking around the store with a shifty look, drawing the attention of the shop assistant.
10
a den or nest of thieves or bad people; a hideout for criminals.
他冒险闯入了那个被认为是强盗贼窝的废弃仓库。
He risked entering the abandoned warehouse, which was considered a den of robbers.
11
wicked heart; evil intentions
小偷看到无人看管的财物，不禁动了贼心。
Seeing the unattended valuables, the thief couldn't help but harbor malicious intentions.
12
Refuse to give up one's evil designs or intentions; still harbor malicious ideas.
小偷虽然被抓住了，但他对偷窃的贼心不死，一有机会就想再次作案。
Although the thief was caught, he still harbored wicked intentions for theft and would try to commit crimes again given any opportunity.
13
meteor; falling star
夏天的夜晚，坐在院子里乘凉，偶尔能看到一颗贼星划过天空。
On summer nights, sitting in the yard enjoying the cool air, one can occasionally see a meteor streak across the sky.
14
furtive, shifty eyes or glance
店主注意到那个陌生人一直用贼眼盯着柜台上的珠宝。
The shopkeeper noticed the stranger kept staring at the jewelry on the counter with shifty eyes.
15
Stolen goods; loot.
警察在嫌疑犯的家中搜出了大量的贼赃。
The police found a large amount of stolen goods in the suspect's home.
16
Lock the door after the thief has gone; take measures after the damage has been done.
直到发生火灾后，大家才意识到消防安全的重要性，这真是贼走关门。
It was only after the fire broke out that everyone realized the importance of fire safety, which is truly a case of locking the stable door after the horse has bolted.
More words with 贼
- qiè窃zéi贼a person who steals things
- qiāng戕zéi贼to harm, to injure, or to ruin
- dào盗zéi贼thief, robber
- guàn惯zéi贼a hardened or habitual thief
- máo蟊zéi贼petty thief, sneak thief
- mài卖guó国zéi贼traitor, national betrayer
- fēi飞zéi贼cat burglar, burglar
- wū乌zéi贼yú鱼squid, cuttlefish
- zéi贼rén人thief, robber
- zéi贼sǐ死rè热Extremely hot, Blazing hot
- dào盗mù墓zéi贼tomb raider, grave robber
- dào盗zéi贼men们thieves, robbers
- qiè窃zéi贼men们thieves, burglars
- dào盗zéi贼tóu头mù目bandit leader, thief leader
- dào盗zéi贼tóu头zi子bandit chief, thief leader
- dòng动le了zéi贼xīn心to have evil intentions, to get greedy
- bài败zhě者wéi为zéi贼History is written by the victors., The defeated are branded as criminals.
- dào盗zéi贼héng横xíng行Thieves are rampant., Rampant thievery.
- dào盗zéi贼tuán团huǒ伙gang of thieves, thieves' guild
- nà那huǒ伙dào盗zéi贼that gang of thieves, the band of robbers
Idioms with 贼
- zéi贼méi眉shǔ鼠yǎn眼shifty, sneaky, or thievish look
- zéi贼qù去guān关mén门lock the stable door after the horse has bolted
- zéi贼rén人dǎn胆xū虚A guilty conscience makes one timid
- dú独fū夫mín民zéi贼brutal tyrannical ruler and public enemy
- jiā家zéi贼nán难fáng防hard to guard against betrayal from within
- luàn乱chén臣zéi贼zǐ子rebellious ministers and traitorous sons
- mín民zéi贼dú独fū夫tyrannical unpopular ruler
- qín擒zéi贼qín擒wáng王To solve a problem, address its root cause
- rèn认zéi贼wéi为zǐ子mistake foe for friend
- rèn认zéi贼zuò作fù父treat an enemy as one's father
- shàng上le了zéi贼chuán船caught in a compromising situation
- xiǎo小ér儿pò破zéi贼youngster achieves great accomplishments
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Open the tool →Questions about 贼
What does 贼 mean in Chinese?
贼 (zéi) means “A person who steals things” in Chinese.
How do you pronounce 贼?
贼 is pronounced zéi in Mandarin Chinese.
How many strokes does 贼 have?
贼 has 10 strokes.
How do you write 贼?
贼 is written in 10 strokes, starting from the radical 贝. See the animated stroke order on this page.
What is the radical of 贼?
The radical of 贼 is 贝, and 贼 is a phono-semantic compound.
