币 meaning and stroke order
Currency, coins, legal tender
How to write 币, stroke by stroke
4 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
- 3
- 4
Meaning of 币
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- money
- coins
- currency
- silk
How 币 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Bills written on silk 巾.
Radical: 巾 (cloth), shared by 53 characters on this site.
How to remember 币
币 is 巾 (jīn, cloth) with a slanted stroke 丿 cutting across the top. Picture a piece of silk cloth with a mark slashed on it, turning plain fabric into money, since bills were once written on silk.
币 (bì) rarely stands alone in everyday speech. It mostly appears in compounds like 人民币 (rénmínbì), 硬币 (yìngbì) and 外币 (wàibì). Example: 这个多少人民币？(Zhège duōshao rénmínbì?) How much is this in RMB?
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 币 (bì) with 市 (shì, market), which has a dot and a horizontal stroke on top instead of a single slanted stroke. Also keep the fourth tone: it is bì, not bǐ like 笔 (pen).
Common words with 币
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
币 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 币
How many strokes are in 币?
币 is written with 4 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 币 mean?
币 (bì) means currency, coins, legal tender. A common word with it is 人民币 (rénmínbì), meaning "Renminbi, the official currency of the PRC (currency codes: RMB or CNY)".
How do you pronounce 币?
币 is pronounced bì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 币?
The radical of 币 is 巾, which carries the idea of "cloth". Dictionaries list 币 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 币?
The traditional form of 币 is 幣. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 币 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 币 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 币 is part of the HSK 3 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 3.
What is the difference between 币 and 钱?
钱 (qián) is the everyday word for money, as in 我没有钱 (Wǒ méiyǒu qián, I have no money). 币 (bì) is more formal and refers to currency as a type or form, like coins, notes or a national currency.
Is 币 used for cryptocurrency?
Yes. Words for digital currencies are built with 币, such as 比特币 (bǐtèbì, Bitcoin) and 虚拟币 (xūnǐbì, virtual currency). This follows the same pattern as 硬币 and 纸币.