噗

pū
口 + 菐

Definitions

pū (onom.) pop; plop; pfff; putt-putt of a motor

Etymology phono-semantic

mouth

Semantic: 口 Phonetic: 菐

About

噗 is a phono-semantic compound composed of the mouth radical 口 and the phonetic component 菐. The radical 口 signals that the character relates to the mouth or to oral sounds, while 菐 suggests its pronunciation. This character is used exclusively as an onomatopoeia, imitating a sudden, explosive noise: a burst of laughter, the sound of sharply blowing out breath, or the soft thud of something falling. Because its entire function is to replicate a sound, it has no deeper semantic development beyond that imitative role.

Example Sentences Hide

他忍不住噗嗤笑了。

Tā rěn bú zhù pūchī xiào le.

He couldn't help but chuckle.

水烧开了，噗噗地响。

Shuǐ shāo kāi le, pū pū dì xiǎng.

The water boiled, making a puffing sound.

她噗的一声吹灭了蜡烛。

Tā pū de yì shēng chuī miè le làzhú.

She blew out the candle with a "puff" sound.

看着滑稽的表演，观众席噗笑声不断。

Kàn zhe huájī de biǎoyǎn, guānzhòng xí pū xiào shēng búduàn.

Watching the funny performance, sporadic chuckles kept coming from the audience.

他讲的笑话太冷，只换来几声尴尬的噗笑。

Tā jiǎng de xiàohua tài lěng, zhǐ huàn lái jǐ shēng gāngà de pū xiào.

His joke was so lame that it only elicited a few awkward snickers.

沸水顶着壶盖，发出噗噜噗噜的声响。

Fèi shuǐ dǐng zhe hú gài, fā chū pūlū pūlū de shēngxiǎng.

The boiling water lifted the kettle lid, making a bubbling sound.

她噗地吐出一口浊气，仿佛卸下了千斤重担。

Tā pū dì tǔ chū yì kǒu zhuó qì, fǎngfú xiè xià le qiān jīn zhòngdàn.

She let out a puff of turbid air, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders.

那荒谬的提议让他噗嗤笑出了声，随即又正色驳斥。

Nà huāngmiù de tíyì ràng tā pūchī xiào chū le shēng, suíjí yòu zhèngsè bóchì.

The absurd proposal made him snort with laughter, but he then solemnly refuted it.

Related Characters

Component: 口

中 和 可 后 如 同 只 知 高 问 向 或 加 合

Component: 菐

璞 蹼 醭 幞 镤 襆 僕 撲 樸 鏷

Example Words

噗浪