How to Write 釜 (fǔ) — Meaning “Cauldron or pot”

Imagine a 'father' (父) cooking in a metal (金) pot, and he is determined not to give up — just like the idiom 'break the cauldrons and sink the boats' (破釜沉舟). Picture the father holding a heavy metal cauldron to remind you of 釜's meaning.

The top part 父 should be written wide, with the four strokes crossing at the center, and the bottom part 金 must be slightly narrower to sit underneath. A common mistake is making the top too small or the bottom too wide, so keep the overall shape balanced and compact.

金 means 'gold' or 'metal' and is a standalone radical, while 釜 is a specific word for a metal pot or cauldron. 鈬 is a rare character often used as a variant or in names, but 釜 is more common in idioms and everyday Chinese, whereas 金 is used for the metal itself.

釜 appears mainly in fixed idioms like 釜底抽薪 (removing the firewood from under the cauldron — a drastic solution) and 破釜沉舟 (breaking the cauldrons and sinking the boats — meaning to burn one's bridges). It is not a common standalone word today, but these idioms are frequently used in formal or literary contexts to express determination or decisive action.

Common words containing 釜 include: 釜底抽薪 (fǔ dǐ chōu xīn) — To take a drastic measure to solve a problem at its source; 破釜沉舟 (pò fǔ chén zhōu) — to burn one's boats / determined; 锅釜 (guō fǔ) — Pots and pans; cooking vessels.