How to Write 伕 (fū) — Meaning “A common laborer or porter”

Imagine a man (夫) standing with two heavy loads on a pole — the person radical 亻 shows it is a person doing this work. The shape of 伕 looks like a person carrying something on each side, like a porter with baskets.

Write the left radical 亻 first: a short left-falling stroke, then a vertical stroke. Then write 夫: two horizontal strokes (top shorter, bottom longer), a left-falling stroke through the middle, and a right-falling stroke. Make sure the two horizontal strokes of 夫 are not too long, and the left radical is narrow so the character stays balanced.

伕 (fū) means porter; 什 (shén) means "what" or "ten" and has 十 (ten) on the right; 仁 (rén) means benevolence and has 二 (two) on the right. Visually, 伕 uses 夫 (man), while 什 uses 十 (ten) and 仁 uses 二 (two). The meanings are completely different.

伕 is rarely used alone today and mostly appears in compound words like 挑伕 (porter) and 轿伕 (sedan chair carrier). These terms refer to historical jobs from old China where men carried goods or people. The character is not in HSK and is considered somewhat old-fashioned, but you may encounter it in historical texts or literature.

Common words containing 伕 include: 挑伕 (tiāo fū) — porter; 轿伕 (jiào fū) — Sedan chair carrier; 伕役 (fū yì) — Corvée labor; forced labor.