琵琶

pípa

noun #31,550

Measure Word

一把琵琶 bǎ

Meanings

1 pipa, Chinese four-stringed lute
2 pear-shaped fretted instrument

Characters

pipa (phonetic)

pipa (phonetic)

Examples

她从六岁就开始学琵琶。

Tā cóng liù suì jiù kāishǐ xué pípa.

She's been learning pipa since she was six.

琵琶的声音清脆悦耳。

Pípa de shēngyīn qīngcuì yuè'ěr.

The pipa has a crisp, pleasing sound.

Tips

history

Arrived via the Silk Road from Persia/Central Asia around the Han dynasty, fully Sinicized by Tang times. Bai Juyi's 《琵琶行》 (816 CE) is the canonical poem that made the instrument a literary symbol for exile and lost beauty.

Stroke Order

琵 pí

琶 pa