波 (bō) is a Chinese character meaning “wave”. It is written from 氵 (water (left-side form)) and 皮 (skin; hide; leather), side by side, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “wave”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
氵 + 皮
Left–right structure
Structure from: 《说文解字》：波，水涌流也。从水皮聲。（现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验：前三笔为氵，后五笔为皮）
Memory aid
Water (氵) plus skin (皮): a wave is the skin of the water, wrinkling as it rolls. 皮 is also the sound part here — though its modern reading pí has drifted far from bō.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 波浪bō làngwave (on water)波 = bō
- 波涛汹涌bō tāo xiōng yǒngthe waves are surging violently; turbulent波 = bō
- 轩然大波xuān rán dà bōa huge uproar; a great disturbance波 = bō
- 波涛bō tāogreat waves; billows波 = bō
Go deeper
All readings
wave
wave; ripple; an undulating motion that spreads outward
水面起伏不平的流动形态；也指像水波一样向外扩散的起伏现象。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 波浪bō làngwave (on water)波 = bō
- 波涛汹涌bō tāo xiōng yǒngthe waves are surging violently; turbulent波 = bō
- 轩然大波xuān rán dà bōa huge uproar; a great disturbance波 = bō
- 波涛bō tāogreat waves; billows波 = bō
Sound component
皮 family diverged
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 波 mean?
波 (bō) means wave; ripple; an undulating motion that spreads outward.
How do you pronounce 波?
It is pronounced bō.
What parts is 波 made of?
氵 (water (left-side form)) and 皮 (skin; hide; leather), side by side. The recorded source is: 《说文解字》：波，水涌流也。从水皮聲。（现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验：前三笔为氵，后五笔为皮）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 波 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 波?
水. 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 波?
Common ones are 波浪 and 波涛汹涌. The reading of 波 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.