高 gāo — tall, high; (of a level, price or standard) high; Gao, a surname

Pinyin

• gāo (first tone, high and level)

tall, high; (of a level, price or standard) high; Gao, a surname

Character breakdown

• 高shape partA single pictograph, and a radical in its own right: a tall building drawn storey by storey.

Mnemonic

A watchtower drawn from the top down: the lid 亠 is the roof, the box beneath it the upper chamber, then the line of the eaves, and at the foot a second box for the doorway. Read the four parts in that order and the ten strokes come out in the right sequence. It is height in 很高 and 高楼, level in 高中, and spirits raised in 高兴.

A memory aid written by HSK Guide editors. It is not an etymology and does not describe the historical origin of the character.

Words containing 高

• 高gāo (first tone, high and level)tall (of people); high
• 提高tígāo (second tone, rising)to raise, to improve (a level or a standard)
• 高兴/高興gāoxìng (first tone, high and level)happy, glad, pleased