沼 meaning and stroke order
Lake, pond, swamp
How to write 沼, stroke by stroke
8 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 沼
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- pond
- pool
How 沼 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Water.
氵 gives the meaning and 召 hints at the sound.
Radical: 氵 (water), shared by 467 characters on this site.
How to remember 沼
沼 combines the water radical 氵 with 召 (zhào), which gives the sound. Picture water that seems to call (召) you in and pull you down, like a swamp.
On its own 沼 is rare in modern speech. It mostly appears in the word 沼泽 (zhǎozé), meaning marsh or swamp, and in 沼泽地 (zhǎozédì), marshland. Example: 这片沼泽很危险。(Zhè piàn zhǎozé hěn wēixiǎn.) This swamp is very dangerous.
Common mistake: Learners often read 沼 as zhào because of its phonetic part 召, but the correct tone is third tone, zhǎo. Also do not confuse it with 招 (zhāo, to beckon), which has the hand radical 扌 instead of water.
Common words with 沼
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
沼 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 沼
How many strokes are in 沼?
沼 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 沼 mean?
沼 (zhǎo) means lake, pond, swamp. A common word with it is 沼泽 (zhǎozé), meaning "marsh; swamp".
How do you pronounce 沼?
沼 is pronounced zhǎo, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 沼?
The radical of 沼 is 氵, which carries the idea of "water". Dictionaries list 沼 under this radical.
Is 沼 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 沼 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 沼 and 池?
池 (chí) is the everyday word for a pond or pool, as in 游泳池 (yóuyǒngchí), swimming pool. 沼 suggests muddy, marshy water and is mainly used in 沼泽.
Can 沼泽 be used figuratively?
Yes. Like English, Chinese uses 沼泽 for a hard situation you sink into, as in 陷入债务的沼泽 (xiànrù zhàiwù de zhǎozé), to sink into a swamp of debt.