侧 (cè): the side, to incline towards, to lean
侧 (cè) is a Chinese character meaning “the side.” Classified as HSK Level 6 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 亻 (semantic) and 则 (phonetic). It ranks #1215 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 侧 person. Its radical form 亻 (person) appears in many related characters such as 人 (rén, person), 什 (shén, what), 今 (jīn, now).
Definitions
- the side
- to incline towards
- to lean
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 侧 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 侧面noun | cè miàn | lateral side |
| 左侧noun | zuǒ cè | left side |
| 右侧noun | yòu cè | right side |
| 内侧noun | nèi cè | inner side |
| 两侧 | liǎng cè | two sides |
| 侧门noun | cè mén | side door |
| 东侧noun | dōng cè | east side |
| 外侧noun | wài cè | outer side |
| 西侧noun | xī cè | west side |
| 侧身verb | cè shēn | (to stand or move) sideways |
| 北侧noun | běi cè | north side |
| 侧影noun | cè yǐng | profile |
| 南侧noun | nán cè | south side |
| 侧重verb | cè zhòng | to place particular emphasis on |
| 侧耳noun | cè ěr | to bend an ear (to) |
侧 appears in 59 compound words: 46 as the first character, 39 as the last, and 15 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 侧 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (3)
Example Sentences
请靠右侧行走，给对面的人让出通道。
Qǐng kào yòu cè xíngzǒu, gěi duìmiàn de rén ràng chū tōngdào.
Please walk on the right side to make way for people coming from the opposite direction.
【施工公告】-L栋北侧3楼外墙壁砖澎拱修缮
shī gōng gōng gào L dòng běi cè 3 lóu wài qiáng bì zhuān péng gǒng xiū 缮
[Construction Notice] – Repair of Bulging Exterior Wall Tiles on the 3rd Floor of the North Side of Building L
绿营侧翼鼓噪台军赴霍尔木兹海峡“护航” 被嘲自...
lǜ yíng cè yì gǔ zào tái jūn fù huò ěr mù zī hǎi xiá hù háng bèi cháo zì . . .
Pro-independence factions are clamoring for the Taiwanese military to go to the Strait of Hormuz to provide "escort"—and are being mocked for...
...ntelligence始于2017年,端侧AI布局已持续近十年
. . . n t e l l i g e n c e shǐ yú 2 0 1 7 nián , duān cè A I bù jú yǐ chí xù jìn shí nián
...ntelligence was founded in 2017, and its edge AI initiatives have been underway for nearly a decade
...乐章——2026“中国音乐之春”欧洲巡演侧记
. . . lè zhāng — — 2 0 2 6 zhōng guó yīn lè zhī chūn ōu zhōu xún yǎn cè jì
...Movements—A Glimpse into the 2026 “Chinese Music Spring” European Tour
唱钱|侧田激动到除衫!打爆“9格Sing盘”为观...
chàng qián cè tián jī dòng dào chú shān ! dǎ bào 9 gé S i n g pán wéi guàn . . .
Singing money|Side Tian was so excited that he took off his shirt! Blowing up the "9-grid Sing plate" for the view...
我住在伊斯坦布尔的欧洲一侧。
Wǒ zhù zài Yīsītǎnbù'ěr de ōuzhōu yī cè.
I live in the European side of Istanbul.
阿尔卑斯山脉义大利一侧的海拔通常较低。
ā'ěrbēisī shānmài Yìdàlì yī cè de hǎibá tōngcháng jiào dī.
The Alps are generally lower on the Italian side.
汤姆做了一个侧空翻。
Tāngmǔ zuò le yī gè cèkōngfān.
Tom did a cartwheel.
自行车从右侧超过汽车是不合法的。
Zìxíngchē cóng yòu cè chāoguò qìchē shì bù héfǎ de.
It is illegal for bicycles to pass on the right of cars.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 亻 (person) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 侧 (cè) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 侧 have?
What is the radical of 侧?
What are the components of 侧?
What are common words containing 侧?
What characters sound the same as 侧 (cè)?
Is 侧 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 侧 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.