托 meaning and stroke order
To hold up in one's hand; to support with one's palm; sth serving as a support: a prop, a rest (e.g. arm rest); (bound form) a shill
How to write 托, stroke by stroke
6 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
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- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Meaning of 托
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to trust
- to entrust
- to be entrusted with
- to act as trustee
- to hold up in one's hand; to support with one's palm
- sth serving as a support: a prop, a rest (e.g. arm rest)
How 托 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Using one's hands 扌 for support 乇; 乇 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 扌 (hand), shared by 342 characters on this site.
How to remember 托
A hand 扌 on the left holds up 乇 on the right, like a palm supporting something from below. 乇 also hints at the sound, so think of a waiter's hand lifting a tray to remember 托 (tuō), to hold up and to support.
托 covers both physical support, like holding something on your palm, and trusting someone with a task, as in 委托 (wěituō) and 托付 (tuōfù). In daily speech you will hear 拜托 (bàituō) all the time when asking a favor. Example: 拜托你帮我拿一下。(Bàituō nǐ bāng wǒ ná yíxià.) Please hold this for me.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 托 with 拖 (tuō, to drag or pull). Both have the hand radical and the same sound, but 托 lifts things up while 拖 drags them along, as in 拖地 (tuō dì, to mop the floor).
Common words with 托
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 摩托 | mótuō | (loanword) motor; (loanword) motorbike; motorcycle (abbr. for 摩托車|摩托车[mo2 tuo1 che1]) | HSK 5 |
| 委托 | wěituō | to entrust; to trust | HSK 5 |
| 拜托 | bàituō | to request sb to do sth; please! | HSK 7-9 |
| 寄托 | jìtuō | to entrust (to sb); to place (one's hope, energy etc) in | HSK 7-9 |
| 托付 | tuōfù | to entrust | HSK 7-9 |
| 衬托 | chèntuō | to serve to highlight; to serve as a backdrop or contrasting element | HSK 7-9 |
| 烘托 | hōngtuō | background (of a painting); backdrop | HSK 7-9 |
| 依托 | yītuō | to rely on; to depend on | HSK 7-9 |
| 摩托车 | mótuōchē | (loanword) motorbike; motorcycle | |
| 委托人 | wěituōrén | (law) client; trustor | |
| 信托 | xìntuō | to entrust; trust bond (finance) | |
| 托盘 | tuōpán | tray; salver | |
| 托儿所 | tuō'érsuǒ | nursery | |
| 乌托邦 | wūtuōbāng | (loanword) utopia |
托 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 托
How many strokes are in 托?
托 is written with 6 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 托 mean?
托 (tuō) means to hold up in one's hand; to support with one's palm; sth serving as a support: a prop, a rest (e.g. arm rest); (bound form) a shill. A common word with it is 摩托 (mótuō), meaning "(loanword) motor; (loanword) motorbike; motorcycle (abbr. for 摩托車|摩托车[mo2 tuo1 che1])".
How do you pronounce 托?
托 is pronounced tuō, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 托?
The radical of 托 is 扌, which carries the idea of "hand". Dictionaries list 托 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 托?
The traditional form of 托 is 託. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 托 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 托 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 托 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 3.
Why is 托 in the word for motorcycle, 摩托车?
摩托 (mótuō) is a sound loan from the English word motor. Here 托 is chosen for its sound, and its meaning of support plays no role.
What does 拜托 mean when people say it alone?
On its own, 拜托 (bàituō) can be a sincere please when asking a favor. In a frustrated tone it can also mean something like come on or give me a break.