How to Write 吹 (chuī) — Meaning “to blow”

Imagine someone opening their mouth (口) and blowing air to make a flag or windmill spin. The right part 欠 looks like a person bending forward, puffing out breath—just think of 'a mouth that owes you some wind'.

The left radical 口 should be small and placed high, not too wide. The right part 欠 has four strokes: start with a short left-falling stroke, then a horizontal hook, a slight pause, and finish with a right-falling stroke. Common mistake: making the 口 too large or writing 欠's last stroke too straight.

吹 means 'to blow' and uses 口 + 欠, while 卟 (bǔ) is a rare character meaning 'to spit out' and has a different right component (卜). 古 (gǔ) means 'ancient' and is completely unrelated—it combines 十 and 口 without any blowing action. Visually, 吹 has a taller right side than 古.

吹 is common in daily phrases like 吹风 (to blow-dry hair or enjoy a breeze), 吹牛 (to brag, literally 'blow cow'), and 吹笛子 (to play the flute). Culturally, 吹牛 is a casual term for boasting—imagine blowing up a cow with hot air—so use it carefully in polite conversation.

Common words containing 吹 include: 吹风 (chuī fēng) — to blow air; 吹牛 (chuī niú) — to brag; 吹笛子 (chuī dí zi) — to play the flute.