扶

fú

verb HSK 5 #3,791

Meanings

1 to support with the hand; to help sb up
2 to hold onto for support

Characters

扶

fú

to support with the hand; to help up

Examples

HSK 2

请扶好扶手。

Qǐng fú hǎo fúshǒu.

Please hold onto the handrail.

HSK 3

他扶着老奶奶过马路。

Tā fú zhe lǎonǎinai guò mǎlù.

He helped the old lady cross the road.

HSK 5

她摔倒了，我赶紧把她扶起来。

Tā shuāidǎo le, wǒ gǎnjǐn bǎ tā fú qǐlái.

She fell down, and I quickly helped her up.

Tips

culture

扶老人 (helping up a fallen elderly person) became a controversial topic in China after several cases where good Samaritans were falsely accused of causing the fall - leading to the social dilemma '扶不扶?' (to help or not to help?).

usage

扶手 (fúshǒu) = handrail/armrest. 搀扶 (chānfú) = to support by the arm (more literary).

Components

radical

扌 shǒu

hand

Hand radical on the left, the side-form of 手 - anchors 扶 in the family of hand-action verbs: 持 hold, 抱 hug, 接 receive, 推 push, 拉 pull, 拿 take. Supporting an elderly person, helping someone up, holding onto a banister - all hand-based actions of physical assistance.

phonetic

夫 fū

adult man; husband

Right side 夫 supplies the sound - fū → fú with only a tone shift. 夫 depicts an adult man with a hairpin marking his coming-of-age, so 'hand + capable adult' adds a faint echo: the supporting hand of a strong helper. Same phonetic in 肤 fū (skin), 麸 fū (bran), 芙 fú (lotus).

Stroke Order

扶 fú

扶