笔

Tap the pinyin to hear it

writing brush; writing implement (pen, pencil etc) (CL:支[zhi1],枝[zhi1]); brushstroke; stroke (in painting or calligraphy); (bound form) style of writing; literary manner; technique of brushwork; (classifier) stroke of a Chinese character; (classifier) sum of money; financial transaction; piece of business; (literary) to write (with a brush or pen)

Make a writing worksheet

HSK 3.0: Level 2
Old HSK: Level 2
Strokes: 10
Radical: 竹 +4
Structure: Top–bottom 上下
Traditional: 笔
Common rank: #457
Unicode: U+7B14

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

How 笔 is formed

Ideographic compound (会意字)

A bamboo rod ⺮ tipped with hair 毛

Components ⺮毛

How to remember it

pen · Heisig RSH #1423

竹 bamboo + 毛 fur

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

Words with 笔

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
笔下生花	bǐ xià shēng huā	to write elegantly
自来水笔	zì lái shuǐ bǐ	fountain pen
中性笔	zhōng xìng bǐ	rollerball pen
马克笔	mǎ kè bǐ	marker (loanword); felt marker
小笔电	xiǎo bǐ diàn	mini laptop or notebook (computer); netbook; CL:臺\|台[tai2],部[bu4]
眼线笔	yǎn xiàn bǐ	eyeliner (cosmetics)
笔管面	bǐ guǎn miàn	penne pasta
独立中文笔会	dú lì Zhōng wén bǐ huì	Independent Chinese PEN center
一笔带过	yī bǐ dài guò	(idiom) to mention only very briefly; to skate over (a topic)
原子笔	yuán zǐ bǐ	(Tw, HK) ballpoint pen
大笔	dà bǐ	(formal) (honorific) your writing; your handwriting; pen; calligraphy brush; a large sum o…
笔头	bǐ tóu	ability to write; writing skill; written; in written form
笔心	bǐ xīn	variant of 筆芯\|笔芯[bi3 xin1]
动笔	dòng bǐ	to put pen to paper; to start writing or painting
笔会	Bǐ huì	PEN (association of writers)
白板笔	bái bǎn bǐ	whiteboard marker; dry-erase marker
手笔	shǒu bǐ	sth written or painted in one's own hand; (of a writer, calligrapher or painter) skill; st…
笔电	bǐ diàn	notebook (computer); CL:臺\|台[tai2],部[bu4]
电笔	diàn bǐ	electrician's test light; voltage tester
笔法	bǐ fǎ	technique of writing, calligraphy or drawing

Sound family

These characters use 笔 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
笔 sound part	bǐ	pen, pencil, writing brush; to compose, to write; Hanzi stroke
滗	bì	to drain