躬 meaning and stroke order
To bow; personally, in person; oneself
How to write 躬, stroke by stroke
10 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 躬
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (literary) body (of a human, esp. the torso)
- (bound form) to bow
- (literary) oneself; personally
- old variant of 躬[gong1]
How 躬 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. To bow 弓 one's body 身; 弓 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 身 (body), shared by 7 characters on this site.
How to remember 躬
The body 身 (shēn) on the left bends like a bow 弓 (gōng) on the right, which is exactly what you do when you bow. The 弓 also tells you the sound: gōng.
躬 rarely stands alone in modern Chinese. It mostly appears in fixed words like 鞠躬 (jūgōng, to bow) and in literary phrases meaning "personally". Example: 他向老师鞠了一躬。(Tā xiàng lǎoshī jū le yì gōng.) He bowed to the teacher.
Common mistake: Learners often write 弓 on the left and forget the 身 side, or confuse 躬 with 射 (shè, to shoot), which also starts with 身. Remember that 躬 has a bow 弓 on the right, while 射 has 寸.
Common words with 躬
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 鞠躬 | jūgōng | to bow; (literary) to bend down | HSK 7-9 |
| 卑躬屈膝 | bēigōngqūxī | to bow and bend the knee (idiom); fawning; bending and scraping to curry favor |
躬 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 躬
Learning 躬 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 躬
How many strokes are in 躬?
躬 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 躬 mean?
躬 (gōng) means to bow; personally, in person; oneself. A common word with it is 鞠躬 (jūgōng), meaning "to bow; (literary) to bend down".
How do you pronounce 躬?
躬 is pronounced gōng, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 躬?
The radical of 躬 is 身, which carries the idea of "body". Dictionaries list 躬 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 躬?
The traditional form of 躬 is 躳. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 躬 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 躬 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 躬 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do you say "to bow once" or "bow three times" with 躬?
鞠躬 can be split, with 躬 acting as the measure of the action. You say 鞠一躬 (jū yì gōng) for one bow and 三鞠躬 (sān jūgōng) for three bows, which is common at formal ceremonies and funerals.
What does 躬 mean in phrases like 事必躬亲?
Here 躬 means "personally" or "oneself". 事必躬亲 (shì bì gōng qīn) describes someone who insists on handling every matter personally. This literary sense shows up mainly in idioms and formal writing.