哔 (bì) — (onomatopoeia) beep, buzz (electronic sound)
Definition
哔 (bì) is an onomatopoeia for short electronic beeps and buzzes — the 'beep' of a phone, doorbell, or machine. It is bound: it always attaches to 的 or reduplicates as 哔哔, and never stands alone as a verb.
onomatopoeia
beepbuzz (electronic sound)
Easily confused
- 毕bìlook-alike(bound form) to finish, to complete
- 闭bìsound-aliketo close, to shut
- 必bìsound-alikecertainly; must; necessarily; will (expressing necessity or certainty)
- 毙bìsound-aliketo die (violently, especially by shooting or execution)
- 避bìsound-aliketo avoid; to evade; to keep away from; to shun
- 秘bìsound-alike(surname) a Chinese family name
Examples
- 哔。Jī qì fā chū bì de yī shēng.The machine emitted a beep.
- 哔，。Shǒu jī lián xù bì le jǐ cì, tí xǐng wǒ yǒu xīn xiāo xi.The phone beeped several times, alerting me to a new message.
- ，哔，。Wǒ àn le mén líng, zhī tīng dào bì de yī shēng, méi rén yìng dá.I pressed the doorbell, only heard a beep, and no one answered.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
This origin belongs to the traditional form 嗶; 哔 is its simplified writing.
Sound part声符shēngfú
畢
畢bì嗶
Same sound today
The traditional form 嗶 pairs 口 (mouth) with 畢, the part that gives the sound; the simplified 哔 is a later shorthand.
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