嘴 (zuǐ) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

嘴

zuǐ[zui3]Tone 3

mouth

HSK 2

Guru Deep Dive

English · mouth

Cached lesson

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:16

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (口) occupies about one-third of the space, while the right side (此) takes up the remaining two-thirds. Keep the horizontal lines evenly spaced.

1. Meaning

mouth

beaknozzlespout (of teapot etc)

NounNeutral#body parts#anatomy#objects

Sample Usage

闭上你的嘴！
bì shang nǐ de zuǐ!
Shut your mouth!
茶壶有一个长嘴。
cháhú yǒu yí gè cháng zuǐ.
The teapot has a long spout.

2. Sound

/[tsuɪ̯²¹⁴]/Tone: 214

嘴

zuǐzui3

ˇ(214)

=zuǐ

Initial Consonant

Type: Unaspirated Dental Sibilant

Sounds like: ts sound like the ts in 'cats'

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: No air puff (sounds like 'ds' in English 'cards'). Tissue still.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip lightly touching behind the back of the lower front teeth.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -i vowel group

Sounds like: -uely / -way sound

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'way'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Abbreviated Rhyme Rule: ui is short for uei

Tone

T3 (214)

2 → 1 → 4 (214)

3rd Tone (Low-Dipping)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 3 dips low and rises, like expressing incredulous doubt ('Really?').

Sandhi: When followed by another 3rd tone syllable, zuǐ changes to a 2nd tone (rising 35), becoming zuí.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the initial 'z' [ts] with 'zh' [tʂ]; remember 'z' is dental/alveolar, not retroflex.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Trace a checkmark in the air: dip down sharply from chin level and sweep back up to eye level.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 16 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (口) occupies about one-third of the space, while the right side (此) takes up the remaining two-thirds. Keep the horizontal lines evenly spaced.

4. Components

Radical 口 · Mouth Radical (mouth)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 口 (indicates the mouth body part)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 此 (original sound: cǐ)

The mouth radical (口) on the left pairs with 'this' (此) on the right, signifying 'this part of the face that eats and speaks—the mouth.'

口 Mouth semantic element
此 Phonetic and structural component

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

2· Phonetic Root: 觜 (zī)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from the mouth radical (口) representing the semantic category of oral anatomy, and (此) providing the phonetic cue.

Semantic Evolution: Originally referred strictly to human and animal mouths, later extended metaphorically to beak-like or spout-like shapes on objects (like teapots and bottles).

The character bridges biological anatomy and inanimate object features seamlessly.

6. Sinosphere

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

You use your **mouth (口)** to talk about **this (此)** and that all day long.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

柴

cháifirewoodReplaces the mouth (口) with wood (木) for firewood.

紫

zǐpurpleReplaces the mouth (口) with thread/silk (糸) for purple silk.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

罪(zuì)

罪 has a net (罒) over non (非), meaning guilt or crime, whereas 嘴 has a mouth (口) for speaking.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

他张开[___]吃了一口苹果。

Clue: zuǐ

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the stroke-heavy right component '此' with similar radicals, or misapplying tone sandhi when speaking naturally.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does 嘴 mean and how is it pronounced with tones?

Production: How do you write the character for 'mouth' using mouth and 'this'?

嘴zuǐmouth

Speed:

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