How to Write 孵 (fū) — Meaning “hatch”

Imagine a bird sitting on an egg (卵) and using its warmth to "hatch" the egg. The right side 孚 looks like a bird with a little tail, and together they show the action of hatching.

The left part 卵 has 7 strokes: start with the top left dot, then the horizontal hook, then vertical dot, and the right side similarly. The right part 孚 has 7 strokes, with a left-to-right order. Be careful not to mix up the stroke order of 卵, as many learners write the vertical dot too early or forget the hook.

孱 (càn) means weak or timid and has the radical 孑 (child) with a different upper part, while 孳 (zī) means to breed or multiply and uses 兹 above 子. Unlike both, 孵 specifically means hatching eggs and contains the egg component 卵, giving it a clear visual connection to incubation.

孵 is used mainly in biological or farming contexts, such as 孵化 (hatching) for birds or reptiles and 孵蛋 (hatching eggs). You might also see it in technology terms like 孵卵器 (incubator) for artificial egg hatching or even in business, like "incubator" for startups, borrowing the hatching metaphor.

Common words containing 孵 include: 孵化 (fū huà) — hatch / incubation; 孵蛋 (fū dàn) — hatch eggs; 孵卵器 (fū luǎn qì) — incubator.