Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (口) should be compact and placed in the upper-left quadrant, leaving ample space for the right phonetic component (刁) which swoops gracefully downward.
1. Meaning
to hold or grip something with one's teeth or mouth
to smoke (holding a cigarette in the mouth)to carry in the beak (for birds)
VerbNeutral#actions#body movements#animals
Sample Usage
小狗嘴里叼着一根骨头。
Xiǎo gǒu zuǐ lǐ diāozhe yī gēn gǔtou.
The little dog is holding a bone in its mouth.
他嘴里叼着一支烟。
Tā zuǐ lǐ diāozhe yī zhī yān.
He has a cigarette dangling from his mouth.
2. Sound
/[ti̯ɑʊ̯˥˥]/Tone: 55
叼
diāodiao1
|
++
¯(55)
=diāo
Build the syllable
Step-by-step blending
diao
Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "a" per main-vowel priority (a > e > o; in -iu/-ui the mark takes the second vowel).
Initial Consonant
d
Type: Unaspirated Alveolar
Sounds like: d sound in English 'dog'
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: No puff of air. Tissue remains still (sounds like English 't' in 'stop').
Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip touches the alveolar ridge behind the upper front teeth.
Final Rhyme
iao
Vowel Group: -a vowel group
Sounds like: rhymes with 'meow' but starting with 'ee'
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'yow'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Abbreviated Rhyme Rule: iao is a compound final containing the medial glide i and the vowel ao.
Tone
T1 (55)
5 → 5 (55)
1st Tone (High-Flat)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 1 stays flat and high, similar to singing a sustained high note on the word 'bee'.
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Listening trap: Confusing the initial 'd' with 't' (e.g. tiāo), or confusing the final 'iao' with 'ao' or 'ou'.
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Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 1 is a high, flat pitch like a musical note held steady at the top of your vocal range. Make a flat horizontal hand gesture.
3. Writing
Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 5 strokes
Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (口) should be compact and placed in the upper-left quadrant, leaving ample space for the right phonetic component (刁) which swoops gracefully downward.
4. Components
Radical口 · Mouth Radical (mouth, opening)
Semantic Clue (形旁):口 (Indicates actions performed with the mouth.)
Phonetic Clue (声旁):刁 (original sound: diāo)
The character combines the 'mouth' radical (口) on the left with the phonetic/shape component 'diaō' (刁) on the right, graphically showing something held in or by the mouth.
口 Mouth
刁 Phonetic clue / hooked shape
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
2· Phonetic Root: 刁 (diāo)
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)
Origin: Created as a phono-semantic compound where 口 (mouth) provides the semantic domain of biting or holding orally, and 刁 provides the sound and a visual hint of a hook.
Semantic Evolution: Originally referred to holding objects in the beak or mouth. The modern meaning remains virtually identical to its ancient roots.
The right component '刁' originally depicted a bent knife or hook, reinforcing the idea of grasping or catching.
6. Sinosphere
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story
Picture a dog opening its MOUTH (口) to use a HOOK (刁) to CATCH and HOLD a juicy bone.