迫 (pò) is a Chinese character meaning “to force”. It is written from 辶 (walk; go — the "movement" radical (chuò)) and 白 (white; plain), one enclosing the other, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “to force; to press”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
辶 + 白
Enclosing structure
Structure from: IDS 拆分 ⿺辶白，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–4 为「白」（撇、竖、横折、横、横），笔画 5–7 为「辶」（点、横折折撇、平捺）
Memory aid
The road radical 辶 sweeps under 白, "plain white". Out on the bare open road there is nowhere left to hide — you are pressed, forced to keep moving.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 压迫yā pòto oppress; to press on迫 = pò
- 迫切pò qièurgent; pressing迫 = pò
- 胁迫xié pòto coerce; to force someone by threats迫 = pò
Go deeper
All readings
to force; to press
to force; to compel; to press; urgent, pressing
用强力使人服从；也表示情势急切、逼近。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 压迫yā pòto oppress; to press on迫 = pò
- 迫切pò qièurgent; pressing迫 = pò
- 胁迫xié pòto coerce; to force someone by threats迫 = pò
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 迫 mean?
迫 (pò) means to force; to compel; to press; urgent, pressing.
How do you pronounce 迫?
It is pronounced pò.
What parts is 迫 made of?
辶 (walk; go — the "movement" radical (chuò)) and 白 (white; plain), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: IDS 拆分 ⿺辶白，并以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–4 为「白」（撇、竖、横折、横、横），笔画 5–7 为「辶」（点、横折折撇、平捺）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 迫 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 迫?
辵. 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 迫?
Common ones are 压迫 and 迫切. The reading of 迫 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.