揍 (zòu) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

揍

zòu[zou4]Tone 4

to hit, to beat

HSK 7

Guru Deep Dive

English · to hit, to beat

Cached lesson

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:12

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (Hand radical 扌) is narrow and compact, while the right side (奏) is wider, taller, and carries more complex horizontal lines. Keep the two halves balanced without letting them merge.

1. Meaning

to hit or beat someone

to smash or break something (colloquial)

VerbColloquial#action#violence#colloquial

Sample Usage

他惹恼了我，我想揍他一顿。
tā rě nǎo le wǒ, wǒ xiǎng zòu tā yī dùn.
He angered me, and I want to give him a beating.
小心点，别把手机给揍碎了。
xiǎo xīn diǎn, bié bǎ shǒu jī gěi zòu suì le.
Be careful, don't smash your phone to pieces.

2. Sound

/[t͡sou̯⁵¹]/Tone: 51

揍

zòuzou4

`(51)

=zòu

Build the syllable

Step-by-step blending

zou

Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "o" per main-vowel priority (a > e > o; in -iu/-ui the mark takes the second vowel).

Initial Consonant

Type: Unaspirated Dental Sibilant

Sounds like: ts sound as in 'tsets' fly

Unaspirated

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

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip lightly touching behind the upper front teeth for the 'ts' onset.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -o vowel group

Sounds like: -ou rhymes with 'oh' or 'soul'

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

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 plunges sharply to the bottom, mirroring an emphatic command or an angry downward gesture.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the initial 'z-' ([ts]) with the retroflex 'zh-' ([ʈʂ]) or the aspirated 'c-' ([t͡sʰ]). Ensure no retroflex curling and no strong puff of air.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 4 is a sharp downward chop, exactly like saying 'NO!' or nodding your head firmly downward once.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 12 strokes

4. Components

Radical 扌 · Hand radical (Hand, manual action)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 扌 (Indicates an action performed with the hand or fist (hitting/beating).)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 奏 (original sound: zòu)

Composed of the Hand radical (扌) on the left, showing physical action, combined with 奏 (zòu, to play music / present) on the right, which provides the pronunciation.

扌 Hand action
奏 Phonetic clue providing 'zòu'

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

7· Phonetic Root: 奏 (zòu)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: The character combines the hand signific (扌) indicating physical force with 奏, which originally depicted offering music or tribute and provides the phonetic reading [zòu]. Over time, applying force with the hand evolved into the meaning of hitting or beating someone.

Semantic Evolution: From general physical intervention to the specific colloquial meaning of hitting, beating, or smashing.

It is a high-frequency spoken word in modern Mandarin, especially in northern dialects.

6. Sinosphere

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine using your **HAND (扌)** to play a rhythm instrument (**奏**) so hard and fast that you end up **SMASHING** and **BEATING** it to pieces!

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

奏

zòuto play music, achieve, or present a memorialPhonetic Core (声旁)

凑

còugather together+ 冫 (ice)

楱

+ 木 (tree)

湊

+ 氵 (water)

Explore this family →

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

奏(zòu)

奏 lacks the left-hand 扌 radical and means playing music or submitting a report.

凑(còu)

凑 uses the water radical (氵) instead of hand (扌) and means to gather together or pool resources.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

那个小偷太可恶了，大家气得想把他___一顿。

Clue: zòu

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the hand radical (扌) with the water radical (氵), which turns it into 凑 (còu - to gather).

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see 揍, what does it mean and how is it pronounced?

Production: How do you write the character for 'to hit/beat' (zòu) with 12 strokes?

揍zòuto hit, to beat

Speed:

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