匕 meaning and stroke order
Spoon, ladle; knife, dirk
How to write 匕, stroke by stroke
2 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
Meaning of 匕
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- dagger
- ladle
- ancient type of spoon
How 匕 is built
Pictographic character. A spoon.
How to remember 匕
匕 (bǐ) is a picture of an old spoon: the short slanted stroke 丿 is the bowl and the hooked stroke 乚 is the curved handle. Turn that spoon into a short blade and you also get its other meaning, a dagger.
On its own 匕 is rare in modern Chinese. You will mostly meet it in the word 匕首 (bǐshǒu), meaning dagger. Example: 他从包里拿出一把匕首。(Tā cóng bāo lǐ ná chū yì bǎ bǐshǒu.) He took a dagger out of his bag.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 匕 (bǐ) with 七 (qī, seven) or with 比 (bǐ, compare), which is two 匕 side by side. Note that 七 has a horizontal stroke crossing the hook, while 匕 starts with a short slanted stroke that does not cross.
Common words with 匕
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 匕首 | bǐshǒu | dagger |
Characters that contain 匕
Learning 匕 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 匕
How many strokes are in 匕?
匕 is written with 2 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 匕 mean?
匕 (bǐ) means spoon, ladle; knife, dirk. A common word with it is 匕首 (bǐshǒu), meaning "dagger".
How do you pronounce 匕?
匕 is pronounced bǐ, in the third tone (dipping).
Is 匕 used to mean spoon in modern Chinese?
Not really. Today a spoon is 勺子 (sháozi) or 汤匙 (tāngchí). The spoon meaning of 匕 survives mainly in classical texts and dictionaries.
Which characters contain 匕 as a part?
匕 appears in characters such as 比 (bǐ, compare), 北 (běi, north), 化 (huà, change) and 旨 (zhǐ, purpose). Spotting it helps you break these characters into familiar pieces.