皮

• Pinyin: pí
• Hanzi breakdown: 皮 = pictograph of a hand stretching an animal hide; serves as a radical in many skin/surface-related characters

Meaning

Skin; leather; hide; peel. Refers to the outer covering of a person, animal, or object.

Very versatile word. Can mean human skin (皮肤), animal hide or leather (皮革/皮鞋), the peel of fruit (苹果皮), or a wrapper (饺子皮). Colloquially, 皮 can also describe a naughty or mischievous child (这孩子真皮). In compounds, it often relates to leather goods.

Examples

1. 这双皮鞋的质量非常好。 These leather shoes are of excellent quality.
2. 妈妈正在削苹果皮。 Mum is peeling the apple skin.
3. 冬天皮肤容易变得很干。 Skin easily becomes very dry in winter.

Usage Guide

Context: daily life, clothing, food

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 这个包是真皮做的。(This bag is made of real leather.)
• 吃苹果要不要削皮？(Do you peel the apple before eating it?)

Don't Say

• 他的脸皮很高。(Don't say 脸皮很高 — the correct expression for being thick-skinned is 脸皮厚, using 厚 (thick), not 高 (tall).)

Origin & History

A pictographic character originally depicting an animal hide being stretched by a hand. The ancient form showed a hand peeling off skin, reflecting its core meaning of outer covering.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal