How to Write 朴 (pō/pǔ) — Meaning “simple; plain; sincere”

Imagine a simple wooden (木) board with a single divination mark (卜) carved into it — no extras, just plain and honest. This visual of unadorned wood with a basic mark helps you recall that 朴 means simple, plain, and sincere.

Write the left side 木 first: horizontal stroke, then vertical, then left-falling, then right-falling. Next write the right side 卜: a vertical stroke from top to bottom, then a small dot to the right of that vertical. Keep both halves similar in width, and don’t let the dot of 卜 drift too far away.

朴 has the 木 component on the left plus an extra right part (卜), while 木 stands alone as a single character meaning “tree.” 未 looks like a 木 with an extra horizontal line at the top, meaning “not yet,” and it has no 卜 component. Focus on the right side: 朴 has a vertical stroke with a dot, 未 has two horizontal strokes at the top.

朴 appears in common words like 朴实 (pǔ shí, honest and down-to-earth) and 朴素 (pǔ sù, plain or frugal), describing a simple, unpretentious lifestyle. As a surname, it is pronounced Piáo and is associated with Korean names, but in mainland China it is also read as Pǔ in some contexts.

Common words containing 朴 include: 朴实 (pǔ shí) — honest; down-to-earth; simple; 朴素 (pǔ sù) — plain; simple; frugal; 姓朴 (xìng pǔ) — Surnamed Piao (Park)..