Writing Balance Rule: The left radical 女 must be compressed slightly to the left so that the right phonetic component 户 has enough space to expand without tilting.
1. Meaning
to envy (success, talent) or be jealous
jealousy directed specifically at someone's superior achievements or capabilities
Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "u" 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 like in English 'do'
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 right behind the upper front teeth, releasing smoothly without a puff of air.
Final Rhyme
u
Vowel Group: -u vowel group
Sounds like: -oo rhymes with boot
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'oo'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T4 (51)
5 → 1 (51)
4th Tone (High-Falling)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 starts high and drops sharply to the bottom, identical to a sharp, angry command in English such as 'No!' or 'Stop!'.
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Listening trap: Confusing the fourth tone (falling 51) with the third tone (dipping 214), leading to a distorted emotional pitch.
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Physical Tone Gesture: A sharp, definitive chop downward with your hand from head height to chest level, matching the high-to-low dropping pitch of Tone 4.
3. Writing
Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 7 strokes
Writing Balance Rule: The left radical 女 must be compressed slightly to the left so that the right phonetic component 户 has enough space to expand without tilting.
4. Components
Radical女 · Female Radical (woman, female)
Semantic Clue (形旁):女 (Indicates that the emotion historically associated with this character was often stereotypically attributed to women in ancient texts.)
Phonetic Clue (声旁):户 (original sound: hù / dù)
A woman (女) standing by the door (户), peeking outside in green-eyed envy at what other households have.
女 Woman (semantic classifier)
户 Door (phonetic clue)
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
8· Phonetic Root: 户 (hù)
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)
Origin: Combined from the 'woman' (女) radical and the phonetic 'door' (户) component. Originally depicted emotional resentment and envy.
Semantic Evolution: Though historically linked with the female radical due to ancient societal perspectives, modern usage applies universally to anyone experiencing envy or jealousy.
In classical Chinese, it frequently appeared in descriptions of palace intrigue and romantic rivalry.
6. Sinosphere
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Kanji (Japanese)
On: ト / Kun: ねた.む
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Hanja (Korean)
투
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story
A **woman (女)** spies through her **door (户)**, burning with green **jealousy (dù)** because her neighbor got a brand new carriage.
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
户
hùhousehold, door, familyPhonetic Core (声旁)
芦
lúreed+ 艹 (plants)
雇
gùto employ, to hire, to rent+ 隹 (short-tailed bird)