滔 meaning and stroke order
Torrential, rushing, overflowing
How to write 滔, stroke by stroke
13 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 滔
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (bound form) to inundate; deluge; torrent
How 滔 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Water.
氵 gives the meaning and 舀 hints at the sound.
Radical: 氵 (water), shared by 467 characters on this site.
How to remember 滔
滔 combines the water radical 氵 with 舀 (yǎo, to scoop), which gives the sound. Picture water pouring in faster than you could ever scoop it out, a rushing torrent.
滔 is a bound form, so it almost never stands alone. You will meet it mostly in set phrases like 滔滔不绝 (tāotāo-bùjué), which describes someone talking on and on. Example: 他一说起足球就滔滔不绝。(Tā yī shuō qǐ zúqiú jiù tāotāo-bùjué.) Once he starts on football, he talks nonstop.
Common mistake: Learners confuse 滔 with 稻 (dào, rice paddy), which shares the same 舀 part but uses the grain radical 禾 and a fourth tone. Remember that the water radical means water rushing, and the reading is first tone tāo.
Common words with 滔
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 滔滔不绝 | tāotāo-bùjué | (idiom) to produce a torrent of words; to talk on and on | HSK 7-9 |
滔 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 滔
How many strokes are in 滔?
滔 is written with 13 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 滔 mean?
滔 (tāo) means torrential, rushing, overflowing. A common word with it is 滔滔不绝 (tāotāo-bùjué), meaning "(idiom) to produce a torrent of words; to talk on and on".
How do you pronounce 滔?
滔 is pronounced tāo, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 滔?
The radical of 滔 is 氵, which carries the idea of "water". Dictionaries list 滔 under this radical.
Is 滔 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 滔 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Is 滔滔不绝 a compliment or a criticism?
It can be either. It may praise someone's fluent, eloquent speech, or gently complain that someone will not stop talking. Context and tone decide which.
What does 滔天 mean?
滔天 (tāotiān) literally means waves reaching the sky. It is used figuratively for something enormous and usually bad, as in 罪恶滔天 (zuì'è tāotiān), monstrous crimes.