How to Write 帚 (zhǒu) — Meaning “Broom.”

Think of the sound "zhǒu" as "Joe" and imagine a person named Joe holding a cloth (巾) in his hand (彐) to sweep the floor. You can also picture the top part as a broom handle and the bottom as the bristles.

Write the top part 彐 first as three horizontal strokes followed by a vertical. Then add the bottom part 巾, which starts with a horizontal hook and two vertical strokes. Be careful not to make the top too wide; it should be narrower than the bottom 巾.

All three share the radical 巾, but 帚 has a hand (彐) on top and means "broom". 帆 combines 巾 with 凡 (a sail) and means "sail". 师 combines 巾 with 帀 and means "teacher". Visually, 帚 looks like a hand holding cloth, while 帆 is more boxy and 师 has a flat top.

帚 appears in everyday words like 扫帚 (sào zhǒu, broom) and 帚把 (zhǒu bǎ, broom handle). It is not common alone but is used in contexts of cleaning. Culturally, brooms (扫帚) are often associated with sweeping away bad luck, especially before Chinese New Year.

Common words containing 帚 include: 扫帚 (sào zhǒu) — broom; 帚把 (zhǒu bǎ) — Broom handle.; 用帚 (yòng zhǒu) — To use a broom.