The Chinese Radical: 卜




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Meaning
oracle, mysticism    卜

Explanation This radical is considered to be a simplification of: fortune telling 占 (crack 卜 in the shell 口 of a turtle from which the fortune was told.). Sometimes it is read as a forking of a road.

Used in these characters:
HSK 1
upwards, on top, upon, above
shàng, shǎng
Ground 一, with a plant 卜 directing upwards. (opposite of下)
From the horizontal ground, a plant is directed upwards.  
HSK 1
down(wards), below, lower, later, next (week etc)
xià

Shows a line 一 as ground and a plant's root 卜 underneath.  
HSK 1
point, o'clock, drop (of liquid), dot stroke
diǎn
Top: fortune telling 占 (crack 卜 in the shell 口 of a turtle from which the fortune was told), bottom: fire 灬
If you tell the fortune over a fire, you will get to the point.  
HSK 1
table
zhuō
Top: excellent 卓 (Before the day happens: Fortune telling 卜 early at the morning 早 is excellent. ), below: part of tree 木
It is excellent to use wood for: a table.  
HSK 2
outside, foreign, external
wài
Left: evening 夕 (When the moon 月 is not yet fully there, it is only evening.), right: bifurcation/parting of the ways 卜
If you are in the evening (alone) at a fork in the road, you are: an outsider.  
HSK 3
to be stuck, blocked, checkpoint, calorie
kǎ, qiǎ

In the question of an up 上 or down 下, you are: stuck.  
HSK 4
to fall, to drop, to lag behind
diào
Left: hand 扌, right: excellent 卓 ([before the day happens:] Fortune telling 卜 early at the morning 早 is excellent.) [卜 = divining = crack in turtle's shell]
(As a support/hold when falling) A hand is excellent, when you fall.  
HSK 4
to reside, to live, spot, bureau, to be in
chǔ, chù
Left: crossed legs 夂, right: fortune telling 卜 (=crack in turtle's shell)
Sit down with crossed legs and tell fortune whether this is a good place to reside.  
HSK 4
salt
yán
Top: 圤 (earth 土, fortune telling 卜 also understood as a branching), bottom: bowl 皿
From earth it can be separated (branched off) and collected in a bowl: salt.  
HSK 4
to divine, to occupy, to take up
zhān, zhàn

Crack 卜 in the shell 口 of a turtle used for divination.  
HSK 5
to repair, to patch, to mend, supplement

Left: clothes 衤/衣, right: fortune telling 卜 (here: image of a needle with a thread (cf. 针)
For the clothes, take a needle to repair.  
HSK 5
to lie (for sleeping), lie down

Left: minister, official 臣 (= eye wide open), right: divine 卜 (here: a rotated cover 亠)
For the staring eyes you need a (rotated) cover if you want to lie down to sleep.  
HSK 6
to visit, to attend (a event), to go, be present

Left: to go, walk 走 (On earth 土 feet 足 have to walk.), right: divine 卜 (here: forking of ways)
By going along the way's forking, you can attend that visit.  
HSK 6
outstanding, excellent
zhuó
Top: divination 卜/占 (crack 卜 in the shell of a turtle used for divination), below: early/fast 早
[before the day happens:] A divination at the early morning is: excellent.  
HSK 6
cover, fish trap (basket), shade
zhào
Top: net 罒, bottom: excellent 卓 ([Before the day happens:] Fortune telling 卜 early at the morning 早 is excellent)
A net is excellent as a cover.  
HSK 6
plain and simple, unadorned
pò, pǔ, piào, pō
Left: tree 木, right: divine 卜 (crack in the shell of a turtle used for divination)
That tree shall be guessed, which is plain and simple.  
HSK 6
to throw oneself at, to pounce on, devote one's energies

Left: hand 扌, right: forking of a way 卜
If your hand is at the fork of a way, you can throw yourself in the right direction.  
HSK 6
mourn, lament
dào
Left: feeling 忄, right: excellent 卓 ([Before the day happens:] Fortune telling 卜/占 early at the morning 早 is excellent)
Can feelings be excellent, when you are mourning?  
no HSK
faithful, loyal, dependable, chaste
zhēn
Top: fortune telling 卜 (crack in a turtle's shell, used for divining), bottom: money 贝
Who divines for money must be faithful.  
no HSK
abbr. for Luxembourg

Top: fork in the road 卜, bottom: buttocks in side view 尸
Like at a forking road (between the three neighboring countries) you sit with your buttocks in Luxembourg.  
no HSK
spacious, wide, generous, ample, well-off, to grip
chuò
Left: thread 纟/糸, right: excellent 卓 ([Before the day happens:] Fortune telling 卜 early 早 at the morning is excellent)
Threads are excellent when they are spacious (=long?).  
no HSK
skull

Left: Luxembourg 卢 (forking of the way卜, buttocks 尸), right: page, leaf, forehead 页/頁 (head 目 with shoulders 八 and eyebrows 一)
If there is only one hair 卜 on the head 尸, this head 頁 is a skull.  
no HSK
to divine, to forecast or estimate, turnip
bo, bǔ

Developed from the crack in the shell of a turtle, from which it was divined.  
no HSK
8th divinatory trigram
guà
Left: 圭 (twice earth 土, here: part of way/street 街, where you walk over piled earth.), right: fortune telling 卜 (crack in a turtle's shell used for divining, sometimes also: forking of a way)
About the way with a forking, there is the: divinatory trigram.  
no HSK
coat, jacket, gown, ensheath
guà
Left: clothes 衤/衣, right: trigram 卦 (twice earth 圭 as fortune telling 卜 in trigram)
Clothes in fortune telling can ensheath as a coat.  
no HSK
to blame, fault, to punish, calamity, misfortune
jiù
Top: outside, foreign 外 (If you are in the evening 夕 [alone] at a fork 卜 in the road, you are: an outsider), bottom: mouth 口
An outsider's mouth blames you.  
no HSK
servant, to fall prostrate
pū, pú
Left: person 亻, right: oracle, forking road 卜
The person who prostrates himself from the standing 丨 forward 丶 is the servant.  
no HSK
to brine, salt, stupid, gravy

Above: devine 卜 (Here: handle of a cover), below: Barrel 囗 with something 㐅 in
The lid on the pickle barrel with something that is brined.  

Radicals are shown here that are similar either in appearance or meaning.

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