补 (bǔ) is a Chinese character meaning “to mend or patch”. It is written from 衤 (clothing (left-side form)) and 卜 (divination), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “to mend; to fill in what is missing”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
衤 + 卜
Left–right structure
Structure from: ids-decomposition (⿰衤卜; 5+2 笔与 hanzi-writer-data 的 7 笔字形一致)
Memory aid
The clothing radical 衤 with 卜 standing beside it. 卜 is here for its sound, bǔ. Picture a torn jacket: the cloth side tells you what is being fixed, and 卜 tells you how to say it.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 补充bǔ chōngto supplement; to add补 = bǔHSK 5
- 补习bǔ xíto take supplementary lessons补 = bǔHSK 5
- 弥补mí bǔto make up for补 = bǔ
- 补偿bǔ chángto compensate; compensation补 = bǔ
- 补钙bǔ gàito supplement calcium; to take calcium补 = bǔ
Go deeper
All readings
to mend; to supplement
to mend or patch; to fill in what is missing; to supplement; to nourish
修补破损的东西；把缺少的部分添上；也指滋养身体。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 补充bǔ chōngto supplement; to add补 = bǔHSK 5
- 补习bǔ xíto take supplementary lessons补 = bǔHSK 5
- 弥补mí bǔto make up for补 = bǔ
- 补偿bǔ chángto compensate; compensation补 = bǔ
- 补钙bǔ gàito supplement calcium; to take calcium补 = bǔ
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 补 mean?
补 (bǔ) means to mend or patch; to fill in what is missing; to supplement; to nourish.
How do you pronounce 补?
It is pronounced bǔ.
What parts is 补 made of?
衤 (clothing (left-side form)) and 卜 (divination), side by side. The recorded source is: ids-decomposition (⿰衤卜; 5+2 笔与 hanzi-writer-data 的 7 笔字形一致). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 补 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 补?
衤. 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 补?
Common ones are 补充 and 补习. The reading of 补 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.