婢 meaning and stroke order
Servant girl; maidservant
How to write 婢, stroke by stroke
11 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
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- 11
Meaning of 婢
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- slave girl
- maid servant
How 婢 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A humble 卑 woman 女; 卑 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 女 (woman), shared by 156 characters on this site.
How to remember 婢
婢 puts 女 (nǚ, woman) next to 卑 (bēi, humble, low). A woman in a low, humble position is a servant girl, and 卑 also hints at the sound bì.
婢 is mostly found in historical, literary, or period-drama contexts, usually in compounds like 婢女 (bìnǚ, maidservant) or 奴婢 (núbì, servants and slaves). Example: 她是府里的婢女。(Tā shì fǔ lǐ de bìnǚ.) She is a maidservant in the mansion.
Common mistake: Learners often read 婢 as bēi because of 卑, but it is fourth tone bì. Also do not confuse it with 碑 (bēi, stone tablet) or 俾 (bǐ), which share the same right side.
Questions about 婢
How many strokes are in 婢?
婢 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 婢 mean?
婢 (bì) means servant girl; maidservant.
How do you pronounce 婢?
婢 is pronounced bì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 婢?
The radical of 婢 is 女, which carries the idea of "woman". Dictionaries list 婢 under this radical.
Is 婢 used to talk about modern housekeepers?
No. It sounds old-fashioned and demeaning today. For a modern domestic helper, people say 保姆 (bǎomǔ) or 阿姨 (āyí).
What does 奴婢 mean in Chinese dramas?
奴婢 (núbì) means servants or slaves as a group. In palace dramas, female servants also use it as a humble way to say "I" when speaking to their masters.