Enter Chinese below and copy Chinese in cursive in elegant, bold, or decorative form. The guide beneath the tool covers the seven-letter word, then introduces cǎoshū, the Chinese cursive script, which is older than any Latin cursive by more than a thousand years.
How to Write Chinese in Cursive
Chinese starts with a capital C, an open curve that sweeps in from the top and ends at the baseline, connecting directly into the h. The h is a tall loop that returns to the baseline and adds one hump; it is the only ascender in the word, so give it full height.
The middle is i-n-e: a short stroke, a two-hump n, and a small looped e, all in the midline band.
Finish with s-e: a short pointed s and a second small loop that should match the first e. Dot the i last. Chinese rises once near the start, at the h, and then runs flat, with no descenders at all.
Cǎoshū: The Original Cursive
Chinese calligraphy has five classical scripts, and two of them are cursive. Xíngshū (行书), running script, softens and links the strokes of regular characters and is the everyday hand of educated writers; the most famous piece of Chinese calligraphy, Wang Xizhi's Preface to the Orchid Pavilion of 353 CE, is in running script. Cǎoshū (草书), literally "grass script", goes much further, reducing characters to abbreviated flowing shapes that follow their own conventions and cannot be read by someone who knows only the regular forms.
Cǎoshū began in the Han dynasty as a clerk's shorthand, matured in the fourth century, and reached its extreme in Tang-dynasty wild cursive (狂草), where masters such as Zhang Xu and Huaisu wrote whole columns in a single continuous motion. Japanese sōsho is its direct descendant. None of this can be produced by the generator, which styles only Latin letters: 中文 typed into the box passes through unchanged, while the romanised Zhongwen or the English word Chinese converts in all three styles.
Where Chinese in Cursive Is Used
Chinese in cursive appears on Mandarin-class project covers, Lunar New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival posts, restaurant and bubble-tea menus, HSK study journals, Chinese-American community event flyers, and bios of Chinese tutors and translators. Romanised companion words such as Ni Hao, Xie Xie, and Gong Xi Fa Cai convert fully.
Seven letters with one ascender is a clean shape for any style. The elegant script pairs well with red and gold at large sizes. Bold cursive suits menus and captions. The decorative style clashes with Chinese themes.
Chinese cursive phrase ideas
- Chinese Language
- Learn Chinese
- Ni Hao
- Xie Xie
- Gong Xi Fa Cai
Chinese in Cursive FAQ
What is cǎoshū?
The Chinese cursive script, literally grass script. It reduces characters to abbreviated flowing shapes with their own conventions, began as a Han-dynasty shorthand, and reached its extreme in Tang-dynasty wild cursive.
What is the difference between running script and cursive script in Chinese?
Running script, xíngshū, softens and links the strokes of regular characters and stays readable to anyone who knows them. Cursive script, cǎoshū, abbreviates characters so far that it must be learned separately.
Can the generator write Chinese characters in cursive?
No. It styles only the Latin letters A to Z, so Chinese characters pass through unchanged. The romanised Zhongwen or the English word Chinese converts fully.
Who were the famous Chinese cursive calligraphers?
Wang Xizhi in the fourth century set the standard for mature cursive and running script, and the Tang-dynasty masters Zhang Xu and Huaisu are famous for wild cursive written in a single continuous motion.
Explore More Languages and Nations
The country name is covered on the China in cursive page. Cǎoshū's Japanese descendant, sōsho, is on the Japanese in cursive page, and Egypt in cursive covers the only cursive tradition that is older. The Nation in Cursive hub lists them all.