胚 meaning and stroke order
Embryo; an unfinished thing
How to write 胚, 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.
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Meaning of 胚
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- embryo
- variant of 胚[pei1]
How 胚 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Flesh.
⺼ gives the meaning and 丕 hints at the sound.
Radical: ⺼ (meat), shared by 176 characters on this site.
How to remember 胚
The left side ⺼ means flesh, and the right side 丕 (pī) gives the sound. Picture the very first bit of flesh that will grow into a body, which is an embryo, 胚 (pēi).
胚 (pēi) rarely stands alone and usually appears in compounds about early development or unfinished objects. The most common word is 胚胎 (pēitāi), embryo, and 胚 also shows up in words like 坯 style meanings for unfired pottery or rough blanks. Example: 医生检查了胚胎的发育。(Yīshēng jiǎnchá le pēitāi de fāyù.) The doctor checked the embryo's development.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 胚 (pēi) with 坯 (pī), which has the earth radical 土 and means an unfired clay blank. Also note the first tone pēi, not pī, even though the phonetic 丕 is read pī.
Common words with 胚
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 胚胎 | pēitāi | embryo | HSK 7-9 |
胚 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 胚
How many strokes are in 胚?
胚 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 胚 mean?
胚 (pēi) means embryo; an unfinished thing. A common word with it is 胚胎 (pēitāi), meaning "embryo".
How do you pronounce 胚?
胚 is pronounced pēi, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 胚?
The radical of 胚 is ⺼, which carries the idea of "meat". Dictionaries list 胚 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 胚?
The traditional form of 胚 is 肧. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 胚 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 胚 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 胚 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 胚 and 胎?
胚 (pēi) refers to the earliest stage of development, while 胎 (tāi) refers to a fetus or anything carried in the womb more generally. Together, 胚胎 (pēitāi) is the standard word for embryo.
Is 胚 used for plants too?
Yes. In biology 胚 also means the plant embryo inside a seed, as in 胚芽 (pēiyá), the germ or embryo bud of a grain.