拜 meaning and stroke order
To bow, to salute; to worship, to pay respects
How to write 拜, stroke by stroke
9 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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- 4
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- 9
Meaning of 拜
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to bow to; to pay one's respects
- (bound form) to extend greetings (on a specific occasion)
- to make a courtesy call
- (bound form) (of a monarch) to appoint sb to (a position) by performing a ceremony
- to acknowledge sb as one's (master, godfather etc)
- (used before some verbs to indicate politeness)
How 拜 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Two hands 手 put together in respect.
Radical: 手 (hand), shared by 23 characters on this site.
How to remember 拜
拜 (bài) is two hands 手 side by side, like palms pressed together as you bow in respect. Picture someone joining both hands and bowing low.
拜 appears mostly in compound words about formal visits, greetings and worship, such as 拜访 (bàifǎng) and 拜年 (bàinián). It also adds politeness before some verbs, as in 拜托 (bàituō). Example: 过年的时候我们去奶奶家拜年。(Guònián de shíhou wǒmen qù nǎinai jiā bàinián.) During the New Year we go to Grandma's house to pay New Year greetings.
Common mistake: Learners often write the right half like a normal 手, but in 拜 the right side has four horizontal strokes and a vertical stroke running down through them, while the left side is a squeezed 手. Also, 拜拜 meaning bye-bye is usually said báibái or bāibāi, not with the fourth tone of 拜.
Common words with 拜
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 礼拜 | lǐbài | to attend a religious service; (coll.) week | HSK 5 |
| 拜访 | bàifǎng | to pay a visit; to call on | HSK 5 |
| 崇拜 | chóngbài | to worship; adoration | HSK 6 |
| 拜托 | bàituō | to request sb to do sth; please! | HSK 7-9 |
| 拜见 | bàijiàn | to pay a formal visit; to call to pay respects | HSK 7-9 |
| 拜会 | bàihuì | (often used in the context of diplomacy) to meet with; to pay a visit to; to call on | HSK 7-9 |
| 拜年 | bàinián | to pay a New Year call; to wish sb a Happy New Year | HSK 7-9 |
| 拜拜 | báibái | (loanword) bye-bye; also pr. [bai1 bai1] etc | |
| 崇拜者 | chóngbàizhě | worshipper | |
| 礼拜堂 | lǐbàitáng | chapel; church (Protestant) | |
| 做礼拜 | zuòlǐbài | to worship; to pray (esp. in a regular religious gathering at a church or mosque) | |
| 拜倒 | bàidǎo | to prostrate oneself; to fall on one's knees | |
| 膜拜 | móbài | to kneel and bow with joined hands at forehead level; to worship | |
| 拜读 | bàidú | (polite) to read (sth) |
拜 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 拜
Learning 拜 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 拜
How many strokes are in 拜?
拜 is written with 9 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 拜 mean?
拜 (bài) means to bow, to salute; to worship, to pay respects. A common word with it is 礼拜 (lǐbài), meaning "to attend a religious service; (coll.) week".
How do you pronounce 拜?
拜 is pronounced bài, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 拜?
The radical of 拜 is 手, which carries the idea of "hand". Dictionaries list 拜 under this radical.
Is 拜 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 拜 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why does 礼拜 mean week?
礼拜 originally meant attending a religious service, which happens weekly, so in everyday speech it came to mean week. You will hear 礼拜一 (lǐbàiyī) for Monday and 礼拜天 (lǐbàitiān) for Sunday, alongside the more standard 星期.
How is 拜托 used in conversation?
拜托 (bàituō) is a polite way to ask someone a favor, like 拜托你帮我一下 (please help me out). Said alone with a certain tone, 拜托 can also mean come on or give me a break.