唠 meaning and stroke order
To chat, to gossip, to jaw, to talk
How to write 唠, stroke by stroke
10 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 唠
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to gossip
- to chat (dialect)
- used in 嘮叨|唠叨[lao2 dao5]
How 唠 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Mouth.
口 gives the meaning and 劳 hints at the sound.
Radical: 口 (mouth), shared by 428 characters on this site.
How to remember 唠
唠 combines 口 (mouth) with 劳 (láo, toil), which also gives the sound. Picture a mouth working hard and never resting, which is what someone does when they nag or chatter on.
In standard Mandarin 唠 (láo) mostly appears in 唠叨 (láodao), meaning to nag or go on and on, often said of parents. Example: 我妈总是唠叨我。(Wǒ mā zǒngshì láodao wǒ.) My mom is always nagging me.
Common mistake: Learners often write 劳 alone and forget the 口 on the left, or confuse 唠 with 捞 (lāo, to fish out), which has the hand radical 扌 instead. Also note that in 唠叨 the second syllable is usually neutral tone: láodao, not láodāo.
Common words with 唠
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 唠叨 | láodao | to prattle; to chatter away | HSK 7-9 |
| 唠唠叨叨 | láolaodāodāo | to chatter; to babble |
唠 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 唠
How many strokes are in 唠?
唠 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 唠 mean?
唠 (láo) means to chat, to gossip, to jaw, to talk. A common word with it is 唠叨 (láodao), meaning "to prattle; to chatter away".
How do you pronounce 唠?
唠 is pronounced láo, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 唠?
The radical of 唠 is 口, which carries the idea of "mouth". Dictionaries list 唠 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 唠?
The traditional form of 唠 is 嘮. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 唠 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 唠 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 唠 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why does 唠 have two readings, láo and lào?
Láo is the reading used in 唠叨 (láodao). Lào is a dialect reading, common in northeastern China, meaning to chat casually, as in 唠嗑 (làokē), to have a chat.
Is 唠叨 negative or neutral?
It usually carries a mild complaint, suggesting someone talks too much or repeats the same reminders. It can be affectionate when talking about family, but it is rarely a compliment.