福字

fúzì

noun

Measure Word

一张福字 zhāng

Meanings

1 the character 福 (fortune/blessing), pasted up as a New Year decoration

Characters

fortune / blessing

Examples

春节前家家户户都要贴福字。

Chūnjié qián jiā jiā hù hù dōu yào tiē fúzì.

Before Spring Festival every household puts up 福 characters.

很多人故意把福字倒着贴。

Hěn duō rén gùyì bǎ fúzì dào zhe tiē.

Many people deliberately paste the 福 character upside down.

Tips

culture

Pasting 福字 upside down is a pun: 福倒了 (fú dào le, 'fortune is upside down') sounds like 福到了 ('fortune has arrived'). Alipay's annual 集五福 (collect five 福) game has turned this tradition into a nationwide digital scavenger hunt.

Stroke Order

福 fú

字 zì