奔 meaning and stroke order
To go to; to head for; towards
How to write 奔, stroke by stroke
8 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 奔
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to go to
- to head for
- towards
- Taiwan pr. [ben1]
- variant of 奔[ben4]
- to hurry
- to rush
- to run quickly
- to elope
- variant of 奔[ben1]
How 奔 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A man 大 running through a field of grass 卉.
Radical: 大 (big), shared by 46 characters on this site.
How to remember 奔
The top part 大 is a person with arms and legs spread wide, and the bottom part 卉 (huì) is a field of grass. Picture a man 大 running at full speed through the grass 卉, and you have 奔 (bēn), to rush.
Read bēn, it means to run fast or rush, as in 奔跑 (bēnpǎo) and 奔波 (bēnbō). Read bèn, it means to head straight for a place, as in 直奔 (zhíbèn) and 投奔 (tóubèn). Example: 他下了班直奔医院。(Tā xià le bān zhí bèn yīyuàn.) After work he went straight to the hospital.
Common mistake: Learners often write the bottom as 廾 or as three 十 lined up wrong. The bottom is 卉, with one 十 on top and two below it. Another common mistake is reading every word as bēn. In 直奔 and 投奔 it is bèn, the fourth tone.
Common words with 奔
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 奔跑 | bēnpǎo | to run | HSK 6 |
| 直奔 | zhíbèn | to go straight to; to make a beeline for | HSK 7-9 |
| 奔波 | bēnbō | to rush about; to be constantly on the move | HSK 7-9 |
| 投奔 | tóubèn | to seek shelter; to seek asylum | HSK 7-9 |
| 奔赴 | bēnfù | to rush to; to hurry to | HSK 7-9 |
| 东奔西走 | dōngbēn-xīzǒu | to run this way and that (idiom); to rush about busily; to bustle about | HSK 7-9 |
| 各奔前程 | gèbènqiánchéng | each goes his own way (idiom); each person has his own life to lead | HSK 7-9 |
| 私奔 | sībēn | to elope | |
| 奔驰 | Bēnchí | to run quickly; to speed | |
| 狂奔 | kuángbēn | to run like crazy; to rush | |
| 奔走 | bēnzǒu | to run; to rush about | |
| 裸奔 | luǒbēn | to streak (run naked) | |
| 飞奔 | fēibēn | to dash (run fast); to rush | |
| 奔放 | bēnfàng | bold and unrestrained; untrammeled |
奔 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 奔
How many strokes are in 奔?
奔 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 奔 mean?
奔 (bèn) means to go to; to head for; towards. A common word with it is 奔跑 (bēnpǎo), meaning "to run".
How do you pronounce 奔?
奔 has more than one reading: bèn and bēn. The most common is bèn, said in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 奔?
The radical of 奔 is 大, which carries the idea of "big". Dictionaries list 奔 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 奔?
The traditional form of 奔 is 犇 and 逩. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 奔 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 奔 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 奔 is part of the HSK 6 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do I know whether to say bēn or bèn?
Use bēn when the focus is on fast running or rushing about, as in 奔跑 and 东奔西走. Use bèn when it means heading toward a goal or destination, as in 直奔 and 投奔. In Taiwan, people often say bēn for both.
What does 私奔 mean, and is it common?
私奔 (sībēn) means to elope, to run off together secretly, usually against family wishes. You will see it in novels, TV dramas and news stories about relationships.