How to Write 补 (bǔ) — Meaning “To mend / To supplement”

A common mistake is writing the radical 衤 with only three strokes instead of four — remember it has a dot on top. The stroke order is: dot, horizontal-pie, vertical, dot, vertical, horizontal, vertical. Think of it as first drawing the clothing radical, then adding the small 卜 on the right.

All three have the clothing radical, but 补 means 'to mend or supplement', while 衩 refers to a slit in clothing (like a dress slit) and 衫 means a garment or shirt. So 补 is an action, while the others are nouns describing clothing parts or types.

You often hear 补 in school contexts, like 补课 (make up classes), or in everyday speech like 补充 (to supplement, e.g., 补充营养 'supplement nutrition') and 修补 (to repair, e.g., 修补自行车胎 'patch a bike tire'). It's a versatile verb for fixing or adding what's missing.

Historically, mending clothes was a common household task, so the character naturally came from that activity. In modern Chinese culture, 补 also appears in expressions like 补票 (buy a ticket after boarding) and 补觉 (catch up on sleep), showing how the idea of 'filling a gap' applies to many areas of life.

补 pairs with many words: 补习 (cram school), 补丁 (a patch, also a software patch), 补品 (tonic or health supplement), and 补选 (by-election). For example, you might say '我需要补课' (I need to make up classes) or '请补充水' (Please replenish water).

Common words containing 补 include: 补课 (bǔ kè) — To make up missed lessons / Extra classes; 补充 (bǔ chōng) — To supplement / To replenish; 修补 (xiū bǔ) — to mend or patch up.