Where 爸 comes from
father
- Meaning part
- 父 (“father”)
- Sound part
- 巴 (“to long for”)
How to write 爸 (bà, “father”)
爸 (bà), an HSK 1 character, means “father”, “dad” and “pa”. It pairs a meaning part, 父 (“father”), with a sound part, 巴 (“to long for”). It is part of the HSK word 爸爸 (“father”), and of 后爸 (“stepfather”) and 奶爸 (“stay-at-home dad”). Japanese reads it ha, “father”.
- Pinyin
- bà
- Strokes
- 8
- HSK
- 1
- Radical
- 父 (“father”)
Stroke by stroke
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
As a top-bottom character it splits into 父 (“father”, the radical), strokes 1–4; 巴 (“to long for”), strokes 5–8, written the top first.
- top leftdownwards → down and left
- topdown and right
- topdown and left
- top leftrightwards
- leftrightwards → down and left
- centerdownwards → down and left
- bottom leftrightwards
- leftdown and right
Trace it
Follow the numbers. Tracing help
Pinyin and meaning
| Pinyin | Meanings | Traditional | In words |
|---|---|---|---|
| bà fourth tone | father; dad; pa; papa | — | 爸爸 后爸 奶爸 爸妈 |
- HSK 2025 syllabus
- level 1
- 2021 standard
- level 1
- HSK 2.0
- in a level 1 word
- Words with it
- 10 in CC-CEDICT
Words with 爸
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 爸爸 | bàba | father; dad HSK 1 |
| 后爸 後爸 | hòubà | stepfather |
| 奶爸 | nǎibà | stay-at-home dad |
| 爸妈 爸媽 | bàmā | dad and mom |
| 老爸 | lǎobà | father; dad |
| 爸比 | bǎbí | (loanword) daddy |
| 亲爸 親爸 | qīnbà | one's own father; biological father |
| 单亲爸爸 單親爸爸 | dānqīnbàba | single father |
| 兔爸 | tùbà | toolbar (loanword) |
| 宝爸 寶爸 | bǎobà | a dad (father of a young child) |
HSK words first (CC-CEDICT).
Practice sheet
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Keep going
HSK 1, in list order: