writing brush; writing implement (pen, pencil etc) (CL:支[zhi1],枝[zhi1])

brushstroke; stroke (in painting or calligraphy); (bound form) style of writing; literary manner; technique of brushwork; (classifier) stroke of a Chinese character; (classifier) sum of money; financial transaction; piece of business; (literary) to write (with a brush or pen)

bamboo (⺮) + hair (毛) = writing brush

A traditional writing brush is made from bamboo for the handle and animal hair for the tip. Both components describe the physical object directly, making this character unusually transparent.

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BambooSemantic
HairSemantic

Words with 笔

连笔

lián bǐ

to write without lifting one's pen from the paper

运笔

yùn bǐ

to wield the pen

铅笔

qiān bǐ

(lead) pencil

铅笔刀

qiān bǐ dāo

pencil sharpener

铅笔盒

qiān bǐ hé

pencil case

钢笔

gāng bǐ

fountain pen

录音笔

lù yīn bǐ

voice recorder (handheld digital device)

开笔

kāi bǐ

to start learning as a poet

阅微草堂笔记

yuè wēi cǎo táng bǐ jì

Notes on a Minutely Observed Thatched Hut by Ji Yun 紀昀|纪昀[Ji4 Yun2], novel of the supernatural

附笔

fù bǐ

postscript

自动铅笔

zì dòng qiān bǐ

mechanical pencil

随笔

suí bǐ

essay

More characters with ⺮