皮 (pí): leather, skin, fur
皮 (pí) is a Chinese character meaning “leather.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 攴 (structural). It ranks #741 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically pictographic, 皮 a hand using a tool 攴 to strip the hide from a carcass. Its radical form 皮 (skin) appears in many related characters such as 皱 (zhòu, to wrinkle).
Definitions
- leather
- skin
- fur
Etymology & Origin
pictographicA hand using a tool 攴 to strip the hide from a carcass
Stroke Order
Practice writing 皮 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 皮
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 皮肤noun | pí fū | skin | 4 |
| 调皮adjective | tiáo pí | naughty | 5 |
| 皮鞋noun | pí xié | leather shoes | 4 |
| 橡皮noun | xiàng pí | rubber | 5 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 皮带 | pí dài | strap |
| 皮包 | pí bāo | handbag |
| 皮革 | pí gé | leather |
| 皮夹 | pí jiā | wallet |
| 皮疹 | pí zhěn | a rash |
| 肚皮 | dù pí | belly |
| 包皮 | bāo pí | wrapping |
| 毛皮 | máo pí | fur |
| 皮毛 | pí máo | fur |
| 皮衣 | pí yī | leather jacket or coat |
| 表皮 | biǎo pí | epidermis |
| 脸皮 | liǎn pí | face |
| 皮肉 | pí ròu | skin and flesh |
| 皮箱 | pí xiāng | leather suitcase |
| 皮质 | pí zhì | cortex |
皮 appears in 100 compound words: 46 as the first character, 54 as the last, and 0 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 皮 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (20)
dogskin plaster, used in TCM for treating contusions, rheumatism etc; quack medicine; sham goods
slight knowledge of sth; superficial acquaintance with a subject; a smattering
slight knowledge of sth; superficial acquaintance with a subject; a smattering
Showing 12 of 20 idioms containing 皮.
Example Sentences
写好皮字需要掌握正确的笔画顺序。
xiě hǎo pí zì xū yāo zhǎng wò zhēng què de bǐ huà shùn xù .
To write the character "皮" correctly, you need to master the proper stroke order.
...吃砂糖橘吃成贵州本地人?真相揭秘:这种黄皮肤要警惕!
. . . chī shā táng jú chī chéng guì zhōu běn dì rén ? zhēn xiāng jiē mì : zhè zhǒng huáng pí fū yāo jǐng tì !
... Eat sugar oranges and become a native of Guizhou? The truth is revealed: be wary of this yellow skin!
男生小便后甩一甩能预防包皮垢吗?减少尿液残留降低刺激吗
nán shēng xiǎo biàn hòu shuǎi yī shuǎi néng yù fáng bāo pí 垢 ma ? jiǎn shǎo niào yè cán liú jiàng dī cì jī ma
Can a boy's shook after urinating prevent smegma? Reduces urine residue and reduces irritation
男生小便后甩一甩会不会伤到龟头?包皮过长者更需小心吗
nán shēng xiǎo biàn hòu shuǎi yī shuǎi huì bù huì shāng dào guī tóu ? bāo pí guò cháng zhě gēng xū xiǎo xīn ma
Will a boy hurt the glans after urinating? Do you need to be more careful if the foreskin is too long?
...“小五郎”前肢伤口深难痊愈 专业兽医移植皮肤手术终康复
. . . xiǎo wǔ láng qián zhī shāng kǒu shēn nán 痊 yù zhuān yè shòu yī yí zhí pí fū shǒu shù zhōng kāng fù
"Kogoro" forelimb wounds are difficult to heal, and professional veterinarians finally recover from skin transplant surgery
故障频出 黄金海岸大学停用头皮冷却设备
gù zhàng pín chū huáng jīn hǎi àn dà xué tíng yòng tóu pí lěng què shè bèi
Frequent breakdowns Gold Coast University stops scalp cooling equipment
你又皮发痒了，找抽，是吧？
Nǐ yòu pí fāyǎng le, zhǎochōu, shì ba?
You just can't stand still, huh? What are you, looking for a fight?
再惹我生气，小心我扒了你的皮！
Zài rě wǒ shēngqì, xiǎoxīn wǒ bā le nǐ de pí!
Anger me again, I might just peel your skin off.
这靴是用皮革做的。
Zhè xuē shì yòng pígé zuò de.
These boots are made of leather.
她瘦得只剩皮包骨了。
Tā shòu de zhǐ shèng píbāo gǔ le.
She is all skin and bone.
Character Family
皮 Radical Family — Characters sharing the skin radical
Related Characters
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 皮 (pí) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 皮 have?
What is the radical of 皮?
What are the components of 皮?
What are common words containing 皮?
What characters sound the same as 皮 (pí)?
Is 皮 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 皮 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear native pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.