收 (shōu) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

收

shōu[shou1]Tone 1

to receive, accept, or collect

HSK 2

Guru Deep Dive

English · to receive, accept, or collect

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:6

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (纟) should be slightly narrower and compressed to give ample room for the right side (攴), ensuring the character feels stable and balanced overall.

1. Meaning

to receive or accept something offered or delivered

to collect or gather items togetherto put away or tidy upto restrain or control oneself or someone elseto stop or bring to an end

VerbNeutral#action#transaction#organization

Sample Usage

我收到了你的信。
Wǒ shōu dào le nǐ de xìn.
I received your letter.
请帮我收拾房间。
Qǐng bāng wǒ shōushi fángjiān.
Please help me tidy up the room.

2. Sound

/[ʂoʊ̯⁵⁵]/Tone: 55

收

shōushou1

¯(55)

=shōu

Initial Consonant

Type: Retroflex Fricative

Sounds like: sh sound as in English 'shoe', but with the tongue curled back retroflexly

UnaspiratedRetroflex

Airflow Tactile Test: Hollow wind sound through curled tongue channel.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip curled back near the hard palate, air flows continuously through the narrow channel.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -o vowel group

Sounds like: ou rhymes with 'oh' in English

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

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

Tone

T1 (55)

5 → 5 (55)

1st Tone (High-Flat)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 1 is sustained and flat at a high register, comparable to singing a high musical note or saying 'Aah' steadily at the doctor's office.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the retroflex 'sh' initial with the alveolar 's' initial, leading to mispronunciation as 'sōu'.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 1 is a high, flat pitch. Make a steady, level flat gesture in the upper air, like a flat horizon line.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 6 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (纟) should be slightly narrower and compressed to give ample room for the right side (攴), ensuring the character feels stable and balanced overall.

4. Components

Radical 攵 · Tapping Radical (rap, strike, or action with the hand)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 攵 (Indicates an action involving the hand or harvesting)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 丩 (original sound: jiū/shōu)

Combining the silk thread or binding radical on the left (or historical spinning/gathering) with the tapping hand on the right (攵), representing gathering, wrapping up, and taking control with the hand.

纟 Silk / binding / gathering
丩 Phonetic clue and intertwined vines meaning

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

4· Phonetic Root: 丩 (jiū)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally formed to represent gathering or tying up harvested crops. Over time, it broadened to mean receiving, collecting, and halting.

Semantic Evolution: From the physical action of gathering harvested goods into storage, it generalized to accepting gifts, collecting money, putting things away, and bringing activities to a close.

The right component 攴 (or 攵) originally depicted a hand holding a stick or tool to direct or manage actions.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: シュウ / Kun: おさ.める

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

수

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

You use your hand (攵) to gather and bind up intertwined items (丩), eagerly RECEIVING and COLLECTING everything into your arms.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

收

shōuto receiveBase character for collecting and receiving.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

妆(zhuāng)

妆 has the female/bed radical (女) on the left instead of silk/binding, meaning 'makeup' or 'adornment'.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

我今天[___]到了一份特别的礼物。

Clue: shōu

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the right-side component with similar radicals like 夂 or 文, leading to incorrect stroke order.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see '收', what English meanings come to mind?

Production: How do you write the character for 'to receive' or 'to collect' in Mandarin?

收shōuto receive, accept, or collect

Speed:

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