Meaning of 补
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to repair
- to patch
- to mend
- to make up for
- to fill (a vacancy)
- to supplement
How to use 补
补 starts from mending things like clothes or tires and extends to making up for something missing, such as a class, sleep, or nutrition. It often appears in compounds like 补充 (bǔchōng) and 补课 (bǔkè). Example: 我周末要补觉。(Wǒ zhōumò yào bǔ jiào.) I need to catch up on sleep this weekend.
补 has the clothing radical 衤 on the left and 卜 (bǔ) on the right, which also gives the sound. Picture patching a hole in your clothes, and you have the core meaning: to mend.
Common mistake: Learners often write the left side as 礻 (the spirit radical, as in 社) instead of 衤 (the clothing radical). 衤 has an extra short stroke, and that stroke shows the link to cloth and mending.
补 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
补 bǔ · to repair · 7 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 补.
| 补充 | bǔchōng | to replenish; to supplement |
| 补偿 | bǔcháng | to compensate; to make up |
| 补贴 | bǔtiē | to subsidize; subsidy |
| 补习 | bǔxí | to take extra lessons in a cram school or with a private tutor |
| 补助 | bǔzhù | to subsidize; subsidy |
| 补课 | bǔkè | to make up missed lesson; to reschedule a class |
| 补考 | bǔkǎo | to sit for a makeup exam; to resit an exam |
| 弥补 | míbǔ | to complement; to make up for a deficiency |
| 补给 | bǔjǐ | supply; replenishment |
| 填补 | tiánbǔ | to fill a gap; to fill in a blank (on a form) |
| 修补 | xiūbǔ | to mend |
| 补救 | bǔjiù | to remedy |
Questions about 补
What does 补 mean?
补 (bǔ) means "to repair; to patch" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 补?
补 is made of 1 character: 补 (7 strokes). That is 7 strokes in total.
Is 补 an HSK word?
Yes. 补 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 补 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 补 is written 補.
What is the difference between 补充 and 补习?
补充 (bǔchōng) means to add more of something or to supplement, such as information or water. 补习 (bǔxí) is about study. It means taking extra lessons, often with a tutor or at a cram school.
Can 补 be used to talk about health or food?
Yes. In everyday speech 补 can mean to nourish the body, as in 补身体 (bǔ shēntǐ), to build up your health. People often say certain foods are very 补, meaning nourishing.