Definition
下笔 is a separable verb (离合词) meaning 'to put pen to paper and begin writing or painting'. You can split 下 and 笔 to insert a duration, measure word, or complement — for example, 下了笔 ('put pen to paper') or 下过一次笔 ('wrote once'). It's used when talking about the start of a creative or written work, often implying hesitation or the moment of committing to paper. The verb itself does not take a direct object; the content follows in the context.
v.o.
to put pen to paperto start writing or painting
Examples
- 下笔。Tā zhàn zài huàbù qián chíchí bù gǎn xià bǐ.He stood in front of the canvas and hesitated to start painting.
- ，。Wèile xiě hǎo zhè piān wénzhāng, wǒ xià guò hǎo jǐ cì bǐ cái suàn mǎnyì.To write this article well, I started and restarted several times before being satisfied.
- ，。Yī xià bǐ jiù tíng bù xià lái, tā xiě le yì zhěng yè.Once he started writing he couldn't stop, and he wrote all night.
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