碑 meaning and stroke order
A monument; an upright stone tablet; stele
How to write 碑, 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 碑
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- a monument
- an upright stone tablet
- stele
How 碑 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Stone.
石 gives the meaning and 卑 hints at the sound.
Radical: 石 (stone), shared by 114 characters on this site.
How to remember 碑
碑 is a pictophonetic character: 石 (shí, stone) on the left tells you it is made of stone, and 卑 (bēi) on the right gives the sound. Picture a stone slab standing upright, carved with words, and you have a stele.
碑 rarely stands alone in modern speech and usually appears in compounds like 墓碑 (mùbēi, gravestone), 纪念碑 (jìniànbēi, monument), and the figurative 里程碑 (lǐchéngbēi, milestone). Example: 这是公司发展的一个里程碑。(Zhè shì gōngsī fāzhǎn de yí gè lǐchéngbēi.) This is a milestone in the company's development.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 碑 with 牌 (pái, sign, plate), since both can be flat objects with writing, but 牌 has the 片 component and a different sound. Also note that 碑 is first tone bēi, the same as 卑 and 悲, not the fourth tone bèi.
Common words with 碑
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
碑 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 碑
How many strokes are in 碑?
碑 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 碑 mean?
碑 (bēi) means a monument; an upright stone tablet; stele. A common word with it is 墓碑 (mùbēi), meaning "gravestone; tombstone".
How do you pronounce 碑?
碑 is pronounced bēi, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 碑?
The radical of 碑 is 石, which carries the idea of "stone". Dictionaries list 碑 under this radical.
Is 碑 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 碑 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 口碑 mean, and why does it contain 碑?
口碑 (kǒubēi) means a reputation spread by word of mouth, like a monument made of people's words. It is common for products, restaurants, and films, as in 这家店口碑很好 (zhè jiā diàn kǒubēi hěn hǎo), this shop has a great reputation.
Which other characters sound like 碑 because they share 卑?
卑 (bēi, low, humble) gives a similar sound to characters like 婢 (bì, maidservant), 啤 (pí, as in 啤酒 píjiǔ, beer) and 脾 (pí, spleen; temper). The sounds are related but not identical, so check each one.