How to Write 普 (pǔ) — Meaning “General or universal”

Imagine the sun (日) shining over a group of people standing together (并) – everyone gets the same sunshine, so it is ‘universal’. This mental picture helps you connect the shape to the meaning of something common for all.

The top part 日 should be slightly narrower than the bottom part 并. A common mistake is to make the two horizontal strokes of 日 too long, but they should be short and centered. Also, the bottom part 并 has two dots that must be symmetrical and placed inside the vertical lines.

㬎 (xiǎn) is very rare and has 日 on top plus 絲 (silk) – it means ‘manifest’, while 普 uses 并 below. 晁 (Cháo) has 日 on top and 兆 (omen/兆) below, and is used mainly as a surname or place name. In everyday Chinese, you will only see 普 in words like 普通.

普 appears in common words like 普通 (ordinary) and 普及 (to popularize). In Chinese culture, the idea of ‘universal’ is important – for example, the concept of 普遍 (widespread) is used in education and policy. You will also see it in the name of the famous Buddhist temple 普陀山.

Common words containing 普 include: 普通 (pǔ tōng) — Common or ordinary; 普及 (pǔ jí) — To popularize or make universal; 普遍 (pǔ biàn) — Universal or widespread.