Dictionary › 笔

笔

bǐ

Old HSK 2 HSK 3.0 character level 2 Character Traditional 筆 Measure word 支、枝

笔 (bǐ) means "pen; pencil; writing brush". It is an HSK 3.0 level 2 word, and was HSK 2 in the old six-level list.

What 笔 means

1. writing brush; writing implement (pen, pencil etc)
2. brushstroke; stroke (in painting or calligraphy)
3. bound formstyle of writing; literary manner; technique of brushwork
4. (classifier) stroke of a Chinese character
5. (classifier) sum of money; financial transaction; piece of business
6. literaryto write (with a brush or pen)

Example sentences

• 你有笔吗？
  Do you have a pen?
• 用铅笔写。
  Write it in pencil.
• 我没铅笔。
  I don't have a pencil.
• 这些是笔。
  These are pens.
• 笔在桌上。
  The pen is on the desk.
• 好多水笔！
  What a lot of pens!

Words starting with 笔

• 笔记本bǐ jì běnnotebook (stationery); (computing) laptop; notebook (abbr. for 笔记本电脑
• 笔者bǐ zhěthe author; the writer (usu. refers to oneself)
• 笔记bǐ jìto take down (in writing); notes; a type of literature consisting mainly of short sketches
• 笔名bǐ míngpen name; pseudonym
• 笔下bǐ xiàthe wording and purport of what one writes
• 笔试bǐ shìwritten examination; paper test (for an applicant)
• 笔直bǐ zhíperfectly straight; straight as a ramrod; bolt upright
• 笔录bǐ lùto put down in writing; to take down notes; transcript
• 笔画bǐ huàstrokes of a Chinese character
• 笔墨bǐ mòpen and ink; words; writing
• 笔迹bǐ jìhandwriting
• 笔挺bǐ tǐng(standing) very straight; straight as a ramrod; bolt upright
• 笔法bǐ fǎtechnique of writing, calligraphy or drawing
• 笔会Bǐ huìPEN (association of writers)
• 笔触bǐ chùbrush stroke in Chinese painting and calligraphy; brushwork; style of drawing or writing
• 笔尖bǐ jiānnib; pen point; the tip of a writing brush or pencil
• 笔头bǐ tóuability to write; writing skill; written
• 笔调bǐ diào(of writing) tone; style
• 笔杆bǐ gǎnthe shaft of a pen or writing brush; (metonym) pen (as in 耍笔杆
• 笔杆子bǐ gǎn zipen; an effective writer
• 笔筒bǐ tǒngpen container; brush pot
• 笔供bǐ gòngwritten evidence, as opposed to oral evidence 口供
• 笔刷bǐ shuāpaintbrush; writing brush (esp. in graphics software)
• 笔力bǐ lìvigor of strokes in calligraphy or drawing; vigor of style in literary composition

Words containing 笔

• 铅笔qiān bǐ(lead) pencil
• 随笔suí bǐessay
• 钢笔gāng bǐfountain pen
• 圆珠笔yuán zhū bǐballpoint pen
• 文笔wén bǐwritings; writing style
• 粉笔fěn bǐchalk
• 毛笔máo bǐwriting brush
• 亲笔qīn bǐin one's own handwriting
• 大笔dà bǐ(formal) (honorific) your writing; your handwriting; pen; calligraphy brush…
• 动笔dòng bǐto put pen to paper; to start writing or painting
• 画笔huà bǐpainting brush
• 蜡笔là bǐcrayon (wax type)
• 提笔tí bǐto take up one's pen; to start to write
• 执笔zhí bǐto write; to do the actual writing
• 下笔xià bǐto put pen to paper
• 手笔shǒu bǐsth written or painted in one's own hand; (of a writer, calligrapher or painter) skill…
• 着笔zhuó bǐto put pen to paper
• 伏笔fú bǐforeshadowing (literary device); foretaste of material to come (in an essay or story)
• 败笔bài bǐa faulty stroke in calligraphy or painting; a faulty expression in writing
• 铅笔盒qiān bǐ hépencil case
• 绝笔jué bǐwords written on one’s deathbed; an artist's final work; swansong
• 五笔字型wǔ bǐ zì xíngfive stroke input method for Chinese characters by numbered strokes, invented by Wang…
• 签字笔qiān zì bǐfelt-tip pen; roller ball pen; gel ink pen
• 代笔dài bǐto write on behalf of sb; to ghostwrite

Characters that look like 笔

Easy to confuse on sight. Compare them side by side once and the pair stops costing you.

• 票piàoticket; ballot; banknote
• 莫mòdo not; there is none who
• 笨bènstupid; foolish; silly
• 冤yuāninjustice; grievance; wrong
• 笺jiānletter; note-paper
• 笈jítrunks (for books)

Sounds the same

Read bǐ, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 比to compare; (followed by a noun and adjective) more adj. than noun; ratio
• 彼that; those; (one) another
• 鄙rustic; low; base
• 俾to cause; to enable; phonetic bi
• 匕dagger; ladle; ancient type of spoon
• 吡used as phonetic bi- or pi-
• 秕grain not fully grown; husks; withered grain
• 妣deceased mother
• 舭bilge
• 沘name of a river
• 疕facial skin disease; mange
• 夶old variant of 比

Where 笔 is taught

In the GraphChinese course it is part of HSK 3 Characters · Set 26 (HSK 3), each one a topic in the dependency graph of HSK 1–6 that opens only once its prerequisites are solid.

Go deeper

• Every HSK 2 word, with the rest of its level.
• How characters are built from components.
• How to learn Chinese characters.
• The four tones and the neutral tone, to read bǐ correctly.
• Look up another word in the free dictionary.