毒 meaning and stroke order
Poison; to poison; poisonous
How to write 毒, stroke by stroke
9 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
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
Meaning of 毒
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- poison
- to poison
- poisonous
- malicious
- cruel
- fierce
How 毒 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. A poisonous plant.
龶 gives the meaning and 母 hints at the sound.
Radical: 母 (mother), shared by 4 characters on this site.
How to remember 毒
The top part 龶 looks like a sprouting plant, and 母 (mǔ) sits underneath to give the sound. Picture a harmful plant growing out of the ground, and you have 毒 (dú), poison.
毒 appears in many everyday words about poison, germs, and drugs, such as 病毒 (bìngdú) virus, 消毒 (xiāodú) to disinfect, and 毒品 (dúpǐn) narcotics. It can also describe something harsh or cruel, like strong sun or a nasty remark. Example: 这种蘑菇有毒。(Zhè zhǒng mógu yǒu dú.) This kind of mushroom is poisonous.
Common mistake: Learners often write the bottom as 毋 (wú) or forget that it is 母 with two dots inside. Also, in 中毒 (zhòngdú) the 中 is read in the fourth tone, zhòng, meaning to be hit by, not zhōng.
Common words with 毒
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 病毒 | bìngdú | virus | HSK 5 |
| 有毒 | yǒu dú | poisonous | HSK 5 |
| 中毒 | zhòngdú | to be poisoned | HSK 5 |
| 消毒 | xiāodú | to disinfect; to sterilize | HSK 5 |
| 杀毒 | shādú | to disinfect; (computing) to destroy a computer virus | HSK 5 |
| 毒品 | dúpǐn | drugs; narcotics | HSK 6 |
| 吸毒 | xīdú | to take drugs | HSK 6 |
| 毒药 | dúyào | poison | |
| 毒贩 | dúfàn | drug dealer; drug trafficker | |
| 贩毒 | fàndú | to traffic narcotics; drugs trade | |
| 毒气 | dúqì | poison gas; toxic gas | |
| 缉毒 | jīdú | to counter narcotics trafficking; drug enforcement | |
| 毒蛇 | dúshé | viper | |
| 下毒 | xiàdú | to put poison in sth; to poison |
毒 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 毒
How many strokes are in 毒?
毒 is written with 9 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 毒 mean?
毒 (dú) means poison; to poison; poisonous. A common word with it is 病毒 (bìngdú), meaning "virus".
How do you pronounce 毒?
毒 is pronounced dú, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 毒?
The radical of 毒 is 母, which carries the idea of "mother". Dictionaries list 毒 under this radical.
Is 毒 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 毒 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Does 毒 mean drugs in the sense of medicine?
No. 毒 refers to illegal drugs or narcotics, as in 毒品 (dúpǐn) and 吸毒 (xīdú) to take drugs. Medicine is 药 (yào), so 毒药 (dúyào) means poison, not medicine.
How is 毒 used to describe people or weather?
毒 can mean malicious or fierce. 他说话很毒 (tā shuōhuà hěn dú) means he speaks very harshly, and 太阳很毒 (tàiyáng hěn dú) means the sun is scorching.