憋 (biē) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

憋

biē[bie1]Tone 1

to choke, to stifle, to hold back

HSK 7

Guru Deep Dive

English · to choke, to stifle, to hold back

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Topology:Top-bottom

Strokes:15

Writing Balance Rule: The top component (灬/四 or related top elements) should be balanced compactly over the large bottom component (心), ensuring the heart base is wide and stable.

1. Meaning

to hold back, restrain, or suppress something internally (like breath, emotions, or bodily urges)

to feel stifled or cooped up indoorsto choke or suffocate due to lack of air

VerbColloquial#emotions#physical state#bodily control

Sample Usage

别把气憋在心里。
bié bǎ qì biē zài xīn lǐ.
Don't bottle up your anger inside.
他在家里憋得慌。
tā zài jiā lǐ biē de huāng.
He feels cooped up and restless staying at home.

2. Sound

/[pi̯e⁵⁵]/Tone: 55

憋

biēbie1

¯(55)

=biē

Build the syllable

Step-by-step blending

bie

Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "e" per main-vowel priority (a > e > o; in -iu/-ui the mark takes the second vowel).

Initial Consonant

Type: Unaspirated Bilabial

Sounds like: b as in boy

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: No burst of air. A tissue in front of lips should stay still.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Lips pressed together lightly then released without a burst of air.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -e vowel group

Sounds like: -ie rhymes with yeh

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'yeh'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Tone

T1 (55)

5 → 5 (55)

1st Tone (High-Flat)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 1 is a high, sustained musical note, just like humming a steady high pitch when thinking.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing it with bié (don't) due to similar initials and finals, but noticing the ending -ie vowel quality.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A steady, high horizontal line drawn in the air, matching the flat high pitch of Tone 1.

3. Writing

Topology: Top-bottom · Strokes: 15 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The top component (灬/四 or related top elements) should be balanced compactly over the large bottom component (心), ensuring the heart base is wide and stable.

4. Components

Radical 心 · Heart Radical (Heart, mind, feelings)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 心 (Indicates that the suppression, stifling, or holding back happens inside the mind or emotions.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 敝 (original sound: bi)

The top part represents something worn out or constrained (敝), sitting right above the heart (心), symbolizing emotions or breath being trapped and suffocating inside the heart.

敝 Provides phonetic clue and the sense of being worn down or enclosed
心 Semantic heart/mind component indicating internal feeling

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

10· Phonetic Root: 敝 (bì)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from 敝 (worn out, trapped) and 心 (heart) to portray the sensation of the heart being restricted, battered, or unable to breathe freely.

Semantic Evolution: Originally conveyed a sense of exhaustion or constraint, which expanded to holding back breath, holding in laughter or urine, and feeling stifled.

Commonly used in modern colloquial Chinese to describe cabin fever or suppressed frustration.

6. Sinosphere

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine someone feeling so WORN OUT (敝) in their HEART (心) that they have to hold their breath and choke back tears, completely BOTTLED UP.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

敝

bìmy (polite); poorPhonetic Core (声旁)

撇

piēto cast away+ 扌 (hand)

蔽

bìto cover; to shield+ 艹 (plants)

幣

+ 巾 (cloth)

Explore this family →

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

别(bié)

别 means 'other' or 'do not' and uses the knife radical (刂) on the right, whereas 憋 uses the heart radical (心) at the bottom.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

别把委屈都___在心里，说出来吧。

Clue: biē

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the tone or writing the complex top phonetic component 敝 incorrectly by missing strokes.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does the character 憋 mean when used in expressions like 憋气 (holding breath)?

Production: How do you write the Chinese character for 'to hold back/stifle' (biē) with the heart radical at the bottom?

憋biēto choke, to stifle, to hold back

Speed:

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