怖 (bù) is a Chinese character meaning “terror”. It is written from 忄 (heart (left-side form)) and 布 (cloth), side by side, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “terror”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
忄 + 布
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：8 画 = 忄 3 画 + 布 5 画
Memory aid
A heart (忄) with a cloth (布) thrown over it — you cannot see what is coming, and that blind feeling is terror.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 恐怖kǒng bùterror; horror; terrifying怖 = bù
- 恐怖片kǒng bù piànhorror film怖 = bù
Go deeper
All readings
terror
terror; dread; to be terrified
害怕；极度的恐惧。多用于「恐怖」等词中。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 恐怖kǒng bùterror; horror; terrifying怖 = bù
- 恐怖片kǒng bù piànhorror film怖 = bù
Sound component
布 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 怖 mean?
怖 (bù) means terror; dread; to be terrified.
How do you pronounce 怖?
It is pronounced bù.
What parts is 怖 made of?
忄 (heart (left-side form)) and 布 (cloth), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 核验：8 画 = 忄 3 画 + 布 5 画. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 怖 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 怖?
心. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 怖?
Common ones are 恐怖 and 恐怖片. The reading of 怖 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.