搏 meaning and stroke order
Combat; to fight; to strike
How to write 搏, stroke by stroke
13 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 搏
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to fight
- to combat
- to seize
- (of heart) to beat
How 搏 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Hand.
扌 gives the meaning and 尃 hints at the sound.
Radical: 扌 (hand), shared by 342 characters on this site.
How to remember 搏
The hand radical 扌 on the left shows this is an action done with the hands, and 尃 on the right gives the sound. Picture a hand reaching out to grab and strike in a fight.
搏 (bó) is rarely used alone and mostly appears in words like 拼搏 (pīnbó, to strive hard), 搏斗 (bódòu, to fight) and 脉搏 (màibó, pulse). It can describe physical fighting, an all-out effort, or a heartbeat. Example: 他们为了梦想努力拼搏。(Tāmen wèile mèngxiǎng nǔlì pīnbó.) They strive hard for their dreams.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 搏 (bó) with 博 (bó, broad, as in 博物馆 bówùguǎn). They share 尃 and the same sound, but 搏 has the hand radical 扌 for fighting, while 博 has 十 for broad learning.
Common words with 搏
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
搏 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 搏
How many strokes are in 搏?
搏 is written with 13 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 搏 mean?
搏 (bó) means combat; to fight; to strike. A common word with it is 脉搏 (màibó), meaning "pulse (both medical and figurative)".
How do you pronounce 搏?
搏 is pronounced bó, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 搏?
The radical of 搏 is 扌, which carries the idea of "hand". Dictionaries list 搏 under this radical.
Is 搏 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 搏 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why does 脉搏 (màibó) mean pulse if 搏 means to fight?
搏 also has the sense of the heart beating, so 脉搏 is literally the beating of the blood vessels. The same sense appears in 起搏器 (qǐbóqì), a pacemaker that makes the heart beat.
What is the difference between 拼搏 (pīnbó) and 搏斗 (bódòu)?
拼搏 is usually figurative and positive, meaning to work extremely hard toward a goal. 搏斗 usually means a real physical struggle, such as fighting an attacker or battling a storm.