HanziGuru.挠 · náo
挠
náo[nao2]Tone 2

to scratch

HSK 7
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撓
Guru Deep Dive

English · to scratch

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Topology:Left-right
Strokes:9
Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (hand) should be slightly narrower and compressed, leaving ample room for the right phonetic component to shine.
Simplification Logic: Simplified from 撓 by replacing the traditional phonetic right component with a simplified equivalent while keeping the hand radical intact.
1. Meaning

to scratch

to thwartto yieldto disturb
VerbNeutral#physical action#body movement
Sample Usage
  • 他忍不住去挠痒痒。
    tā rěn bù zhù qù náo yǎngyang.
    He couldn't help scratching his itch.
  • 猫挠坏了沙发。
    māo náo huài le shāfā.
    The cat scratched and ruined the sofa.
2. Sound
/[nɑʊ̯³⁵]/Tone: 35
挠
náonao2
++
´(35)
=náo
Build the syllable
Step-by-step blending
nao
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
n
Type: Alveolar Nasal
Sounds like: n sound as in 'no'
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: Air passes completely through nose.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip pressed against the alveolar ridge behind the upper front teeth.
Final Rhyme
ao
Vowel Group: -a vowel group
Sounds like: -ao rhymes with 'ow' in 'cow'
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ow'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T2 (35)
2nd Tone (Mid-Rising)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 2 starts mid and rises sharply to the top, exactly like asking 'What?' in English when you didn't hear someone.
👂
Listening trap: Do not confuse Tone 2 (náo, rising) with Tone 3 (nǎo, dipping), which completely changes the meaning or sounds unnatural.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: A rising hand gesture moving from low to high, like shrugging your shoulders and asking 'now?'
3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 9 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (hand) should be slightly narrower and compressed, leaving ample room for the right phonetic component to shine.

Simplification Logic: Simplified from 撓 by replacing the traditional phonetic right component with a simplified equivalent while keeping the hand radical intact.

4. Components

Radical 扌 · Hand Radical (hand, manual action)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 扌 (Indicates actions performed with the hand or fingers, such as scratching.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 尧 (original sound: náo)

A hand (扌) reaches out to perform the action associated with the sound of '尧' (náo), which is scratching an itch.

  • 扌 Hand radical indicating physical action
  • 尧 Phonetic component providing the sound náo
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from the hand radical (扌) showing physical movement and 尧 (náo) providing the phonetic reading for scratching or disturbing.

Semantic Evolution: Originally referred to hand movements like scratching or twisting, later expanding metaphorically to thwarting or yielding.

  • The hand radical is one of the most common classifiers for physical verbs.
6. Sinosphere
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story

You use your HAND (扌) to SCRACH an itch that yáo-ns (尧) on your skin.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
尧
yáosurname Yao; Yao or Tang Yao (c. 2200 BC), one of the Five legendary Emperors 五帝[Wu3 Di4], second son of Di Ku 帝嚳|帝喾[Di4 Ku4]Phonetic Core (声旁)
烧
shāoto burn, to cook, fever+ 火 (fire)
绕
ràoto wind, to coil, to rotate around+ 纟 (silk)
晓
xiǎodawn, daybreak, to know+ 日 (sun)
Explore this family →
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
浇(jiāo)
浇 has water (氵) for watering plants, while 挠 has hand (扌) for scratching.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
蚊子叮了他一下，他忍不住用手去[___]痒。
Clue: náo
Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the hand radical (扌) with the water radical (氵), leading to mixing it up with characters like 浇 (jiāo).

Memory Prompts
Recognition: When you see 挠, what physical action comes to mind?
Production: How do you write the character for 'to scratch' (náo)?
Real-World Video Context

Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.

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