ZHIZHI 知止 · LEARN CHINESE DAILY
必
must; necessarily
bì
5 strokes · 心 (heart) pierced by 丿 — by convention · HSK 3
Where 必 comes from
Originally a weapon-handle pictograph, borrowed early for 'must'. The modern form reads as a heart 心 with a stroke through it — what pierces the heart cannot be avoided.
必 in Chinese culture
必须 must, 必要 necessary, 不必 no need. Chinese exam culture's holy word: 必考 'will definitely be tested' — the sticker on every cram-school handout.
Example
必须 bìxū — must
你必须先完成作业。
Nǐ bìxū xiān wánchéng zuòyè.
You must finish your homework first.
How to remember it
A stroke PIERCES the heart — no escape: MUST.
何必 'why must you?' is the gentlest way Chinese pushes back — a rhetorical shrug built from two characters.
Same sound, different tones
Words unlocked by 必
必须 bìxū
must
不必 búbì
no need
Related characters
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