咐

fù
付 + 口

Definitions

fù (verb) to instruct; to tell

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 口 represents the meaning and 付 represents the sound.

Semantic: 口 Phonetic: 付

About

咐 is a phonosemantic compound: the left component 口 (mouth) marks the character as belonging to the domain of speech and verbal commands, while the right component 付 (fù) serves as the phonetic indicator. The character is almost never used in isolation; it appears virtually always in the compound 吩咐, meaning to instruct or give an order. In this compound, the mouth radical together with 付, a character that on its own means "to hand over" or "entrust", aptly suggests the act of delivering spoken directives.

Example Sentences Hide

老师吩咐我们安静。

Lǎoshī fēnfu wǒmen ānjìng.

The teacher told us to be quiet.

他仔细吩咐了每个步骤。

Tā zǐxì fēnfu le měi gè bùzhòu.

He carefully instructed each step.

经理吩咐员工完成报告。

Jīnglǐ fēnfu yuángōng wánchéng bàogào.

The manager instructed the employees to complete the report.

妈妈吩咐我买牛奶和面包。

Māma fēnfu wǒ mǎi niúnǎi hé miànbāo.

Mom told me to buy milk and bread.

在离开之前，他吩咐了几件事。

Zài líkāi zhīqián, tā fēnfu le jǐ jiàn shì.

Before leaving, he instructed several matters.

总统吩咐助手准备重要文件。

Zǒngtǒng fēnfu zhùshǒu zhǔnbèi zhòngyào wénjiàn.

The president instructed his assistant to prepare important documents.

根据老板的吩咐，我们改变了计划。

Gēnjù lǎobǎn de fēnfu, wǒmen gǎibiàn le jìhuà.

According to the boss's instructions, we changed the plan.

尽管时间紧迫，他仍详细吩咐了所有细节。

Jǐnguǎn shíjiān jǐnpò, tā réng xiángxì fēnfu le suǒyǒu xìjié.

Despite the time pressure, he still instructed all the details in detail.

Related Characters

Component: 付

府 附 符 驸 苻 鲋 跗 拊 祔 坿 弣 柎 泭 蚹

Component: 口

中 和 可 后 如 同 只 知 高 问 向 或 加 合

Example Words

吩咐 嘱咐