拂 (fú) is a Chinese character meaning “to brush or whisk lightly”. It is written from 扌 (hand (radical form)) and 弗 (not (classical negative); here used for its sound fú), side by side, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “to brush lightly; to flick”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
扌 + 弗
Left–right structure
- 扌 hand (radical form) · shǒu meaning
- 弗 not (classical negative); here used for its sound fú · fú sound
Structure from: 现代字形拆分，经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画数据核验（扌3画 + 弗5画 = 8画）
Memory aid
A hand (扌) waving "no, not that" (弗, the classical word for "not") — flicking the dust off a sleeve. 弗 is also the sound part: 弗 fú, 拂 fú.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 吹拂chuī fú(of a breeze) to brush against; to caress拂 = fú
- 拂晓fú xiǎodaybreak; dawn拂 = fú
Go deeper
All readings
to brush lightly; to flick
to brush or whisk lightly; to flick away; (of wind) to sweep gently past
轻轻擦过、掸去；也指风轻轻掠过。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 吹拂chuī fú(of a breeze) to brush against; to caress拂 = fú
- 拂晓fú xiǎodaybreak; dawn拂 = fú
Sound component
弗 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 拂 mean?
拂 (fú) means to brush or whisk lightly; to flick away; (of wind) to sweep gently past.
How do you pronounce 拂?
It is pronounced fú.
What parts is 拂 made of?
扌 (hand (radical form)) and 弗 (not (classical negative); here used for its sound fú), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分，经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画数据核验（扌3画 + 弗5画 = 8画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 拂 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 拂?
扌. 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 拂?
Common ones are 吹拂 and 拂晓. The reading of 拂 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.