HanziGuru.付 · fù
付
fù[fu4]Tone 4

to pay

HSK 3
Guru Deep Dive

English · to pay

Cached lesson
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Topology:Left-right
Strokes:5
Writing Balance Rule: The left side (亻 person radical) should be narrow and slightly taller, while the right side (寸) is compact, ensuring the two halves balance harmoniously without crowding.
1. Meaning

to pay (money, a bill, etc.)

to hand over to / entrustclassifier for pairs or sets of thingssurname Fu
Verb / ClassifierNeutral#finance#action#commerce
Sample Usage
  • 用微信付钱很方便。
    Yòng wēixìn fù qián hěn fāngbiàn.
    Paying with WeChat is very convenient.
  • 请付账。
    Qǐng fù zhàng.
    Please pay the bill.
2. Sound
/[fu⁵¹]/Tone: 51
付
fùfu4
++
`(51)
=fù
Initial Consonant
f
Type: Labiodental Fricative
Sounds like: f sound in English 'fall'
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: Continuous smooth friction.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Upper teeth touch the lower lip, continuous fricative airflow without plosive burst.
Final Rhyme
u
Vowel Group: -u vowel group
Sounds like: oo sound in 'boot'
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'oo'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T4 (51)
4th Tone (High-Falling)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 is a sharp falling pitch (51), matching an emphatic English command or downward inflection of finality.
👂
Listening trap: Confusing the sharp falling Tone 4 (fù) with a flat or rising tone; ensure the pitch drops decisively from high to low.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 4 starts high and chops straight down sharply like a karate chop, mirroring an abrupt command like 'Stop!'.
3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 5 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (亻 person radical) should be narrow and slightly taller, while the right side (寸) is compact, ensuring the two halves balance harmoniously without crowding.

4. Components

Radical 亻 · person radical (human, person)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 亻 (Indicates human involvement or action performed by a person.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 寸 (original sound: cùn / fù sound evolution)

A person (亻) holding out a hand or measuring unit (寸) to hand over payment or responsibility.

  • 亻 person
  • 寸 inch / thumb / hand measure
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally combined the person radical (亻) representing an agent and寸 representing a hand or measurement of giving, evolving to mean handing over or paying.

Semantic Evolution: From the physical act of handing something over to a person, it broadened to financial payment ('paying money') and extended as a classifier for paired items.

  • The component 寸 often provides both phonetic hints and semantic notions of precise measurement or hand gestures in ancient Chinese.
6. Sinosphere
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: フ / Kun: あ.、つ.ける
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
부
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story

A PERSON (亻) reaches out with an INCH (寸) of thumb to hand over money and PAY the cashier.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
对
duìcorrect / facingUses the right-hand component 又 instead of 寸.
树
shùtreeAdds a tree wood radical 木 on the left.
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
对(duì)
付 uses 寸 (inch/hand) on the right, while 对 uses 又 (again/hand).
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
买单时，我来[___]钱。
Clue: fù
Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the right component 寸 with 又, which changes the character into 对.

Memory Prompts
Recognition: What does 付 mean and how is it pronounced with tones?
Production: How do you write the character for 'to pay' (fù) using person and inch components?
Real-World Video Context

Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.

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