部 (bù): part; section

Meanings

1 part; section
2 department
3 measure word for films, books, machines

Characters

部

bù

part; section; department

Examples

这部电影很好看。

Zhè bù diànyǐng hěn hǎokàn.

This movie is great.

教育部发布了新规定。

Jiàoyùbù fābù le xīn guīdìng.

The Ministry of Education issued new regulations.

这本书分为三部分。

Zhè běn shū fēnwéi sān bùfen.

This book is divided into three parts.

Tips

grammar

部 as a measure word is used for movies (一部电影), books (一部小说), and machines (一部手机 in some dialects).

Components

radical

阝 yì

city; settlement (right-阝)

Right ear 阝 — the simplified side-form of 邑 (city), Kangxi #163. Always on the RIGHT side it marks place names and administrative districts; on the LEFT it would be the hill 阜. 部 originally named an administrative district, hence 'department, ministry, section.' Same radical in 都, 郊, 邻, 郎.

phonetic

咅 pǒu

spit out; reject (phonetic shape)

Left side 咅 — a 立 (stand) over 口 (mouth), historically a phonetic depicting an utterance. Supplies the sound for 部: pǒu → bù with regular labial shift. The same phonetic appears in 倍, 培, 陪, 剖 — a cluster of b-/p- readings.