俯 meaning and stroke order
To bow down, to face down, to look down
How to write 俯, stroke by stroke
10 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 俯
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to look down
- to stoop
- variant of 俯[fu3]
How 俯 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Person.
亻 gives the meaning and 府 hints at the sound.
Radical: 亻 (man), shared by 277 characters on this site.
How to remember 俯
A person 亻 standing beside a government office 府 (fǔ) bows down low out of respect. The 亻 tells you it is about a person's body, and 府 gives the sound fǔ.
俯 is mostly used in set words about bending or looking down, such as 俯视 (fǔshì), 俯瞰 (fǔkàn) and the everyday exercise word 俯卧撑 (fǔwòchēng). Example: 他每天做五十个俯卧撑。(Tā měitiān zuò wǔshí gè fǔwòchēng.) He does fifty push-ups every day.
Common mistake: Learners often write 府 (fǔ, government office) when they mean 俯, since they sound the same. If the meaning is about a body bending or looking down, you need the person radical 亻 on the left.
Common words with 俯
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
俯 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 俯
How many strokes are in 俯?
俯 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 俯 mean?
俯 (fǔ) means to bow down, to face down, to look down. A common word with it is 俯首 (fǔshǒu), meaning "to bend one's head".
How do you pronounce 俯?
俯 is pronounced fǔ, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 俯?
The radical of 俯 is 亻, which carries the idea of "man". Dictionaries list 俯 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 俯?
The traditional form of 俯 is 俛. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 俯 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 俯 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 俯 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the opposite of 俯?
The opposite is 仰 (yǎng), to look up or tilt the head back. The two often appear together, as in 俯仰 (fǔyǎng), bending down and looking up.
What is the difference between 俯视 and 俯瞰?
Both mean to look down at something. 俯瞰 (fǔkàn) usually means viewing a wide scene from a high place, like a city from a mountain, while 俯视 (fǔshì) is more general and can also suggest looking down on someone.