Chinese characters are composed of various basic strokes, which are the fundamental building blocks of writing. Each stroke is written in a specific order, and mastering them is key to writing characters correctly and efficiently. There are eight basic strokes in Chinese:

• Horizontal stroke (横, héng) – A line written from left to right.
• Vertical stroke (竖, shù) – A line written from top to bottom.
• Dot stroke (点, diǎn) – A small downward dot.
• Downward-left stroke (撇, piě) – A stroke slanting from top right to bottom left.
• Downward-right stroke (捺, nà) – A stroke slanting from top left to bottom right.
• Rising stroke (提, tí) – A short stroke rising upwards to the right.
• Hook stroke (钩, gōu) – A stroke ending in a small hook.
• Bend stroke (折, zhé) – A stroke that changes direction, usually in right angles.

These strokes combine in various ways to form complex characters. The stroke order is crucial for maintaining the structure and balance of each character.