HSK · Level 123
47 words
Chinese word
撇
Pronunciation
Pinyinpiě
Meaning
- nounleft-falling stroke
Example
汉字的撇是常见的笔画。hàn zì de piě shì cháng jiàn de bǐ huà
The left-falling stroke is a common stroke in Chinese characters.
More examples
写字时，撇要注意起笔、方向和收笔。xiě zì shí piē yào zhù yì qí bǐ fāng xiàng hé shōu bǐ
When writing, pay attention to where the left-falling stroke starts, its direction, and where it ends.
Core concept
A diagonal sweep that carries a character's visual line down and left, helping give its structure balance.
Common phrases
笔顺中的撇bǐ shùn zhōng de piē
left-falling stroke in the stroke order
撇捺piē nà
left-falling and right-falling strokes
撇的位置piē de wèi zhì
left-falling stroke position
Similar words
捺nà: A broad, lengthy stroke that runs diagonally down and right in a Chinese character.
点diǎn: A brief stroke shaped like a small dot in a Chinese character.
横héng: A stroke that extends from left to right across a Chinese character.
竖shù: A stroke that extends from top to bottom in a Chinese character.
Definition in Chinese
汉字笔画名，指从右上向左下的斜长笔画，是构成许多字形和平衡结构的基本笔画之一。hàn zì bǐ huà míng zhǐ cóng yòu shàng xiàng zuǒ xià de xié cháng bǐ huà shì gòu chéng xǔ duō zì xíng hé píng héng jié gòu de jī běn bǐ huà zhī yī
Word origin
撇 (piē, "left-falling stroke") is a specialized calligraphy term whose written form uses the hand radical 扌 (shǒu, "hand") and the sound-bearing component 敝 (bì, "worn out").
Usage tips
- Because the term is a shape label rather than the name of a whole character, it appears in explanations of many unrelated characters and supports discussion of handwriting beyond memorized examples.
Other meanings
- strokenoun
Opposites
- 捺nàright-falling strokenoun
Related words
- 撇开piē kāiset asideverb
- 撇嘴pié zuǐcurl one's lipsverb