How to Write 抱 (bào) — Meaning “to hug or hold in arms”

Imagine a hand (扌) reaching out to wrap around a package (包). You can picture hugging a big, round bundle — the hand and the wrapped thing together make the action of hugging easy to recall.

Write the left radical 扌 first, then the right part 包. Pay attention to the stroke order inside 包: horizontal stroke, then a curved hook, then the closing stroke. A common mistake is making 包 too wide or writing the hook too flat — keep it compact and rounded.

While 抱 means to hug with both arms encircling something, 托 (tuō) means to hold or support with an open palm, like carrying a tray. Visually, 抱 has 包 on the right, while 托 has 乇; the meanings are physically opposite — enclosing vs. balancing.

抱 appears in common words like 拥抱 (yōng bào, to embrace) and 抱歉 (bào qiàn, to apologize, literally "hold regret"). In daily life, public hugging is less common in China than in Western countries, but 拥抱 is used among close friends or family, and 抱 itself is very common in writing and speech.

Common words containing 抱 include: 拥抱 (yōng bào) — to hug; to embrace; 抱歉 (bào qiàn) — to feel sorry; 抱着 (bào zhe) — holding in one's arms.