扒 meaning and stroke order
To peel; to skin; to tear
How to write 扒, stroke by stroke
5 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
- 5
Meaning of 扒
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to peel
- to skin
- to tear
- to pull down
- to cling to (sth on which one is climbing)
- to dig
- to rake up
- to steal
- to braise
- to crawl
How 扒 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Hand.
扌 gives the meaning and 八 hints at the sound.
Radical: 扌 (hand), shared by 342 characters on this site.
How to remember 扒
扒 combines the hand radical 扌 with 八 (bā), which gives the sound. Picture a hand pulling something apart in two directions, like the two strokes of 八 spreading away from each other.
Read bā, it means to cling to, dig, or peel, as in 扒在墙上 (bā zài qiáng shàng, to cling to the wall). Read pá, it appears in words like 扒手 (páshǒu, pickpocket) and 牛扒 (niúpá, beef steak). Example: 小心扒手。(Xiǎoxīn páshǒu.) Watch out for pickpockets.
Common mistake: Learners often read 扒手 as bāshǒu, but it is páshǒu with the second tone. Also do not confuse 扒 with 叭 (bā), which has the mouth radical 口 and appears in 喇叭 (lǎba, horn).
Common words with 扒
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 扒手 | páshǒu | pickpocket | |
| 牛扒 | niúpá | (dialect) beef steak |
扒 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 扒
How many strokes are in 扒?
扒 is written with 5 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 扒 mean?
扒 (bā) means to peel; to skin; to tear. A common word with it is 扒手 (páshǒu), meaning "pickpocket".
How do you pronounce 扒?
扒 is pronounced bā, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 扒?
The radical of 扒 is 扌, which carries the idea of "hand". Dictionaries list 扒 under this radical.
Is 扒 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 扒 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do I know whether 扒 is read bā or pá?
Use bā for clinging, digging, peeling, or pulling down, as in 扒皮 (bāpí, to skin). Use pá for raking, stealing, braising, and crawling, as in 扒手 (páshǒu) and 扒鸡 (pájī, braised chicken).
Is 牛扒 the normal word for steak?
牛扒 (niúpá) is a dialect word, common in Cantonese-speaking areas. In standard Mandarin, 牛排 (niúpái) is the usual word for beef steak.