部
bù
- Pinyin
- bù
- Pinyin (Plain)
- bu
- Tone
- 4
- Strokes
- 10
- Radical
- 邑
- Readings
- bùbuTone: 4ministry; department; section; part; division; troops; board; classifier for works of literature, films, machines etcOrder: 0Primary
- Stroke Order Code
- Speed
- Stroke Order Data
- ["M 337 833 Q 325 834 323 827 Q 319 820 329 810 Q 393 740 426 735 Q 433 734 439 738 Q 443 742 446 759 Q 447 775 441 790 Q 428 817 337 833 Z", "M 205 642 Q 168 635 195 618 Q 240 594 295 609 Q 377 625 462 644 Q 502 654 507 659 Q 516 666 511 676 Q 504 688 474 695 Q 443 701 412 688 Q 369 673 321 661 Q 267 648 205 642 Z", "M 229 546 Q 254 479 278 470 Q 290 466 300 480 Q 304 492 301 512 Q 297 528 279 540 Q 252 562 240 568 Q 233 572 228 562 Q 225 555 229 546 Z", "M 418 465 Q 419 469 423 472 Q 439 499 459 533 Q 466 548 481 567 Q 494 577 487 588 Q 478 604 450 622 Q 437 631 421 625 Q 412 621 418 611 Q 425 580 388 473 Q 384 466 382 457 C 374 428 403 439 418 465 Z", "M 382 457 Q 181 418 87 410 Q 72 409 69 400 Q 65 388 82 376 Q 124 346 169 359 Q 358 419 555 441 Q 573 442 573 451 Q 574 464 556 475 Q 526 488 502 483 Q 457 474 418 465 L 382 457 Z", "M 235 304 Q 223 308 200 313 Q 188 316 185 311 Q 178 304 187 289 Q 212 235 229 147 Q 233 122 248 104 Q 266 82 271 97 Q 275 110 274 132 L 269 169 Q 256 253 255 276 C 253 298 253 298 235 304 Z", "M 453 193 Q 475 268 504 289 Q 519 307 504 323 Q 429 377 380 345 Q 298 318 235 304 C 206 297 226 270 255 276 Q 270 279 393 308 Q 408 312 414 306 Q 426 294 407 205 C 401 176 444 164 453 193 Z", "M 274 132 Q 332 147 461 163 Q 471 164 473 174 Q 473 181 453 193 C 429 208 429 208 407 205 Q 397 204 389 201 Q 323 182 269 169 C 240 162 245 125 274 132 Z", "M 664 637 Q 673 643 756 671 Q 760 672 771 667 Q 781 660 772 641 Q 700 493 700 487 Q 699 475 722 465 Q 843 387 827 300 Q 824 293 818 285 Q 805 275 779 278 Q 740 285 706 288 Q 699 289 699 281 Q 702 274 717 263 Q 792 227 808 197 Q 817 184 830 182 Q 842 182 857 194 Q 893 242 892 298 Q 889 385 767 476 Q 728 497 803 584 Q 807 590 812 594 Q 834 628 867 645 Q 898 661 872 682 Q 835 716 810 728 Q 792 735 775 725 Q 753 707 656 672 C 628 662 636 625 664 637 Z", "M 605 -38 Q 611 -63 618 -73 Q 624 -80 631 -78 Q 646 -69 652 -8 Q 661 83 657 173 Q 654 224 654 555 Q 654 582 664 637 C 669 664 669 664 656 672 Q 655 673 654 674 Q 620 695 605 698 Q 592 702 576 693 Q 567 684 575 674 Q 600 629 603 588 Q 606 425 601 173 Q 600 16 605 -38 Z"]
- Meaning
- “部” most commonly means a part or section of a whole, and by extension is used for organized divisions such as departments, ministries, troops, or large groups (e.g., “一部电影” = one movie, “部门” = department). It also appears in compound words to indicate sections of things like books or bodies (e.g., “上部” = upper part).
- Metadata
- Locale: enCached At: 5/9/2026, 2:27:48 AM
Usage
The character 部 (bù) is most commonly seen as a noun meaning a “part,” “section,” or “department.” Learners first meet it in words like 部分 (bùfèn, “part/portion”), 全部 (quánbù, “the whole, all”), and 内部 / 外部 (nèibù / wàibù, “internal / external”). In everyday life it appears frequently in organizational names: 部门 (bùmén, “department”), 比如：财务部、销售部 (finance department, sales department), and in government bodies like 外交部 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) or 教育部 (Ministry of Education). In these cases, 部 gives the idea of a structured division within a larger whole. Learners also encounter 部 in words related to categories of things or media. For example, it is used as a classifier for movies, books, or large machines: 一部电影 (yí bù diànyǐng, “a movie”), 一部小说 (yí bù xiǎoshuō, “a novel”), 一部手机 (yí bù shǒujī, “a cell phone”), where it roughly means “a whole piece/work/unit.” In dictionaries or language textbooks you may see 部首 (bùshǒu, “radical”), referring to the indexing component of Chinese characters. Across these uses, the core idea remains “a distinct part or unit within a larger set or system.”
Handwriting Notes
部 in handwriting usually looks a bit more compact and rounded than in printed fonts. Visually, it has a left-right structure: the left side 阝 is the “ear” radical (the same shape as in 都, 院, etc.), and the right side 咅 is a box-like shape with a short horizontal line and a hook-like stroke on top, plus a small component inside. In everyday writing, people often simplify or connect strokes: the small “box” and its inner strokes on the right can look less squared and more like a quick enclosure with a couple of short, merged lines, and the 阝 radical on the left is often written with slightly curved or angled strokes rather than the perfectly straight ones seen in typefaces. Different writers and handwriting styles (formal vs. casual, pen vs. brush) can change the proportions: the left 阝 may be narrower or wider, and the right component can be taller or squatter, but readers still recognize the stable overall pattern of “ear radical on the left + enclosed structure on the right.” Some strokes may be lightly connected, especially when writing fast, so the character can appear more fluid and less square than printed forms. Modern AI handwriting recognition systems are trained on many such handwritten variants of 部, allowing them to correctly identify the character even when individual strokes are slightly distorted, merged, or stylized.
Description
部 is a common Chinese character meaning “part,” “section,” or “department,” and is often used for divisions of organizations, books, or machines. It is pronounced bù in Mandarin and is frequently seen in words like 部门 (department) and 部分 (part).
Common Words
- 部bu4ministry
- 腿部tui3 bu4leg
- 颚部e4 bu4jaw
- 喉部hou2 bu4neck
- 局部ju2 bu4part
Example Sentences
我喜欢部。
wo3 xi3 huan5 bu4
I like ministry.
腿部很常见。
tui3 bu4 hen3 chang2 jian4
腿部 is very common.
我们在学习颚部。
wo3 men5 zai4 xue2 xi2 e4 bu4
We are learning jaw.
这个喉部很重要。
zhe4 ge5 hou2 bu4 hen3 zhong4 yao4
This neck is important.
请写一下“部”。
qing3 xie3 yi1 xia4 bu4
Please write '部'.