浊 meaning and stroke order
Dirty, filthy, muddy, turbid
How to write 浊, 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
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- 9
Meaning of 浊
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- turbid; murky; impure
How 浊 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A pond 氵 growing scum 虫.
Radical: 氵 (water), shared by 467 characters on this site.
How to remember 浊
The water radical 氵 sits next to 虫 (chóng, bug). Picture a pond so stagnant that bugs and scum grow in it, and the water turns 浊 (zhuó), murky.
浊 describes water, air, or sound that is cloudy, impure, or heavy. It is mostly used in compounds and written language, often paired against 清 (qīng, clear). Example: 河水很混浊。(Héshuǐ hěn hùnzhuó.) The river water is very muddy.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 浊 with 烛 (zhú, candle), which has 火 instead of 氵 and a different tone. Remember that 浊 is second tone, zhuó, and the water radical points to muddy liquid.
Common words with 浊
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 混浊 | hùnzhuó | turbid; muddy | HSK 7-9 |
Questions about 浊
How many strokes are in 浊?
浊 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 浊 mean?
浊 (zhuó) means dirty, filthy, muddy, turbid. A common word with it is 混浊 (hùnzhuó), meaning "turbid; muddy".
How do you pronounce 浊?
浊 is pronounced zhuó, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 浊?
The radical of 浊 is 氵, which carries the idea of "water". Dictionaries list 浊 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 浊?
The traditional form of 浊 is 濁. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 浊 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 浊 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 浊 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the opposite of 浊?
The usual opposite is 清 (qīng), meaning clear or pure. The pair appears in the set phrase 清浊 (qīngzhuó), meaning clear and turbid, and in idioms like 激浊扬清 (jī zhuó yáng qīng), to drive out evil and promote good.
Can 浊 describe things other than water?
Yes. It can describe stale air, as in 浊气 (zhuóqì, foul air), or a deep, heavy voice. In phonetics, 浊音 (zhuóyīn) means a voiced sound.