批 (pī) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

批

pī[pi1]Tone 1

to batch, to criticize, to ascertain

HSK 3

Guru Deep Dive

English · to batch, to criticize, to ascertain

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:7

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (扌) should be narrower and slightly elevated, while the right component (比) occupies the broader right half with balanced parallel strokes.

1. Meaning

to batch, to group, to classify

to criticize or repudiateclassifier for batches, lots, or shipmentstier or batch for university entrance rankings

Verb and ClassifierNeutral#business#quantifiers#evaluation

Sample Usage

这批货质量很好。
Zhè pī huò zhìliàng hěn hǎo.
This batch of goods is of very good quality.
他们分批到达目的地。
Tāmen fēn pī dàodá mùdìdì.
They arrived at the destination in batches.

2. Sound

/[pʰi⁵⁵]/Tone: 55

批

pīpi1

¯(55)

=pī

Initial Consonant

Type: Aspirated Bilabial

Sounds like: p sound as in English 'pat'

Aspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Strong puff of air! A tissue held before lips MUST fly forward.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Both lips pressed together tightly before releasing a burst of air.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -i vowel group

Sounds like: -ee sound as in English 'see'

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

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, steady pitch, similar to holding a high musical note without fluctuation.

👂

Listening trap: Do not confuse with the unaspirated sound 'bī', remember that 'pī' has a sharp puff of air.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Keep your hand flat and steady near your chin, making a high, level chopping motion from left to right like a flat tabletop.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 7 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (扌) should be narrower and slightly elevated, while the right component (比) occupies the broader right half with balanced parallel strokes.

4. Components

Radical 扌 · Hand radical (hand, action done with hands)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 扌 (indicates an action performed by hand, such as sorting or stamping approval)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 比 (original sound: bǐ)

A hand (扌) sorting and comparing things side by side (比) to divide them into batches or stamp approval.

扌 hand action
比 comparison / phonetic clue

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

21· Phonetic Root: 比 (bǐ)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from the hand radical (扌) representing physical action and (比) providing the sound and the idea of organizing items side by side.

Semantic Evolution: Originally meant to strike or handle with the hand, later broadened to mean commenting, authorizing, sorting into batches, and criticizing.

In imperial times, officials would use a brush to 'pi' (批) official documents, meaning to write comments or approval on them.

6. Sinosphere

🇻🇳

Sino-Vietnamese

phê

The Chinese high level tone corresponds to a high flat or level tone concept in historical borrowings.

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: ヒ

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

비

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

With your hand (扌), you line items up side-by-side (比) to check them, stamp them, and divide them into a new batch (批).

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

批评

pīpíngto criticizeCombines batch/comment with comment character.

批准

pīzhǔnto approveCombines official approval with standard/accurate.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

比(bǐ)

Lacks the hand radical (扌) on the left; means 'to compare'.

披(pī)

Uses the same phonetic (比) but has the clothing/drape meaning with a fabric association.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

这家工厂生产了新的一___产品。

Clue: pī

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the measure word usage for batches of goods with general counting words like 个 or 件.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does the character 批 mean when used as a classifier for products?

Production: How do you write the character for 'batch' or 'to criticize' (pī) featuring the hand radical?

批pīto batch, to criticize, to ascertain

Speed:

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