处 (chǔ): to reside; to live; to dwell

Meanings

1 to reside; to live; to dwell
2 to be situated at; to be in (a state)
3 to get along with
4 to handle; to deal with
5 to punish; to discipline

Characters

处

chǔ

to dwell; to handle

Examples

他们相处得很好。

Tāmen xiāngchǔ de hěn hǎo.

They get along very well.

请尽快处理这件事。

Qǐng jǐnkuài chǔlǐ zhè jiàn shì.

Please handle this matter as soon as possible.

公司对他做出了处分。

Gōngsī duì tā zuòchū le chǔfèn.

The company disciplined him.

Tips

mistakes

处 has two readings. chǔ is the VERB sense — to reside, get along, handle, punish (相处, 处理, 处分, 处于). chù is the NOUN sense — place, office, aspect (到处, 长处, 处长). When in doubt: action → chǔ, location → chù.

memory

Verb chǔ keeps the original sense of "to be settled in / to dwell" — to handle (处理) and to get along (相处) both come from the idea of finding one's footing in a situation. Even "to punish" (处罚) is putting someone in the appropriate position.

Components

radical

夂 zhǐ

walk slowly; step

Top-left indexing radical 夂 — a foot stepping down, files 处 under "slow step." The original 處 had 虎 (tiger) above 凡 (vessel) — a tiger settled in its place. The 1956 reform stripped that scene to 夂, keeping only the trace of motion that frames "the place where one comes to rest."

semantic

卜 bǔ

divine; mark

Bottom-right 卜 — two strokes that historically stood for the seat or post where one settles. In modern 处 it acts as a graphic marker fixing the location: the foot stops 夂 here at this spot 卜 = the place. Together 夂+卜 give the "where one stays / handles things" core meaning.