负 (fù) is a Chinese character meaning “to carry on one's back”. It is written from ⺈ (top form of 刀 (knife); a short slash with a turning stroke tucked under it) and 贝 (shell), one above the other, and takes 6 strokes.
Build the character for “to bear; to lose (a contest)”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
⺈ + 贝
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: Unicode U+8D1F and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection (6 strokes = ⺈ 2 strokes over 贝 4 strokes)
Memory aid
A ⺈ shape leaning over a 贝 (shell — old money): a back bent over the money it owes. That is what 负 does — it bears the load.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 负责fù zéto be responsible for; to be in charge of负 = fù
- 胜负shèng fùvictory or defeat; the outcome of a contest负 = fù
- 负担fù dānburden; to bear (a cost or responsibility)负 = fù
- 负荷fù hèload; burden (e.g. workload, electrical load)负 = fù
- 辜负gū fùto let down; to fail to live up to负 = fù
Go deeper
All readings
to bear; to lose (a contest)
to carry on one's back; to bear (a duty, a debt); to lose a contest; negative (in maths)
背着；担当（责任、债务）；比赛中失败；数学上与「正」相对。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 负责fù zéto be responsible for; to be in charge of负 = fù
- 胜负shèng fùvictory or defeat; the outcome of a contest负 = fù
- 负担fù dānburden; to bear (a cost or responsibility)负 = fù
- 负荷fù hèload; burden (e.g. workload, electrical load)负 = fù
- 辜负gū fùto let down; to fail to live up to负 = fù
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 负 mean?
负 (fù) means to carry on one's back; to bear (a duty, a debt); to lose a contest; negative (in maths).
How do you pronounce 负?
It is pronounced fù.
What parts is 负 made of?
⺈ (top form of 刀 (knife); a short slash with a turning stroke tucked under it) and 贝 (shell), one above the other. The recorded source is: Unicode U+8D1F and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection (6 strokes = ⺈ 2 strokes over 贝 4 strokes). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 负 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 负?
贝. 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 负?
Common ones are 负责 and 胜负. The reading of 负 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.