籌 (chóu) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

籌

chóu[chou2]Tone 2

chip, token, to plan, to prepare, to raise funds

HSK 7

View Simplified FormSwitch to Simplified

筹

Guru Deep Dive

English · chip, token, to plan, to prepare, to raise funds

Cached lesson

1 / 1

Topology:Left-right

Strokes:13

Writing Balance Rule: The left component (bamboo radical) should be compact and slightly higher, while the right phonetic component balances with wider strokes and a stable base.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 籌 uses 壽 for the phonetic side, while the simplified form 筹 uses 寿, streamlining the lower right internal strokes.

1. Meaning

chip in gambling, tally token, or to plan and prepare

to raise funds or gather resourcesmeans or strategy (as in bargaining chips)

Noun / VerbFormal / Literary#finance#strategy#games#planning

Sample Usage

筹备婚礼
chóubèi hūnlǐ
to prepare for a wedding
筹集资金
chóují zījīn
to raise funds

2. Sound

/[t͡ʂʰoʊ̯³⁵]/Tone: 35

籌

chóuchou2

´(35)

=chóu

Build the syllable

Step-by-step blending

chou

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: Aspirated Retroflex

Sounds like: ch sound with tongue curled back

AspiratedRetroflex

Airflow Tactile Test: Both curled tongue AND explosive puff of air! Tissue MUST fly.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip curled back near the hard palate, releasing a strong burst of air.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -o vowel group

Sounds like: ou rhymes with 'oh-oo' sound in soul

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

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

Tone

T2 (35)

3 → 5 (35)

2nd Tone (Mid-Rising)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 2 starts mid and rises sharply to high (35), matching an inquisitive English 'What?' or 'Really?'

Sandhi: When followed by another Tone 2 character, the pitch contour may flatten slightly before rising, but generally follows standard 35 rising pitch rules.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the retroflex initial 'ch-' with the dental affricate 'c-' (chóu vs. cóu). Ensure you curl your tongue back for 'chóu'.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Raise your hand upward and to the right, matching the rising pitch of Tone 2, just like asking a surprised question: 'Really?'

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 13 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left component (bamboo radical) should be compact and slightly higher, while the right phonetic component balances with wider strokes and a stable base.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 籌 uses 壽 for the phonetic side, while the simplified form 筹 uses 寿, streamlining the lower right internal strokes.

4. Components

Radical ⺮ · Bamboo Radical (Bamboo, bamboo slips (historically used for counting and writing))

Semantic Clue (形旁): ⺮ (Indicates bamboo, referencing ancient counting rods and tally tokens made from bamboo.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 寿 (original sound: shòu / chóu)

Ancient bamboo counting rods (⺮) were bundled and managed to plan (寿) strategies and calculate numbers.

⺮ Bamboo radical (material of ancient counting chips)
寿 Phonetic clue providing the 'chou' sound base

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

10· Phonetic Root: 壽

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally formed with bamboo (⺮) representing tally sticks used in ancient China for counting, gambling, and official planning, combined with a phonetic element.

Semantic Evolution: From physical bamboo counting sticks and gambling chips, the meaning expanded to the mental act of planning, preparing, and raising necessary resources.

Ancient Chinese scholars and officials used bamboo sticks (筹) as counters before the widespread adoption of written abacuses.

6. Sinosphere

🇻🇳

Sino-Vietnamese

trù

The rising tone maps closely to the Vietnamese hỏi or sắc depending on historical register, pronounced with an initial tr- sound.

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: チュウ (chū) / Kun: かず (kazu)

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

주

Sound Shift Bridge: Mandarin chóu corresponds to Japanese on'yomi chū and Korean ju.

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Picture a casino where bamboo (⺮) gambling CHIPS are stacked high to celebrate long life and good FORTUNE (寿), as players carefully PLAN their next big bet.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

壽

Phonetic Core (声旁)

幬

+ 巾 (cloth)

檮

+ 木 (tree)

濤

+ 氵 (water)

Explore this family →

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

寿(shòu)

寿 means longevity and lacks the bamboo radical (⺮) found on the left side of 筹.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

我們正在為下周的活動[___]資金。

Clue: chóu

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the simplified phonetic component 寿 with unrelated characters, or forgetting the bamboo radical ⺮ on the left.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see 筹 with the bamboo radical and 寿 phonetic, what sound and primary meanings come to mind?

Production: How do you write the character for 'planning, preparing, or gambling chips' (chóu)?

籌chóuchip, token, to plan, to prepare, to raise funds

Speed:

Searching YouTube for native pronunciation videos...

0 / 0