衚 meaning and stroke order
Recklessly, foolishly; wildly
How to write 衚, stroke by stroke
15 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 衚
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- used in 衚衕|胡同[hu2 tong4]
How 衚 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Walk.
行 gives the meaning and 胡 hints at the sound.
Radical: 行 (to go), shared by 12 characters on this site.
How to remember 衚
Picture the phonetic 胡 (hú) squeezed inside 行 (xíng, walk), like a narrow lane you walk through. That lane is a 衚衕, the old alley of Beijing.
衚 appears almost only in the traditional spelling 衚衕 (hútòng), meaning a narrow lane or alley. Today mainland Chinese writes it as 胡同. Example: 我家住在一條老衚衕裡。(Wǒ jiā zhù zài yì tiáo lǎo hútòng lǐ.) My home is in an old alley.
Common mistake: Learners often try to use 衚 on its own or in words like 胡說 (húshuō, talk nonsense), but those words use plain 胡, not 衚. Also note that in 胡同 the second syllable is usually read with a neutral tone, hútong, in everyday Beijing speech.
Questions about 衚
How many strokes are in 衚?
衚 is written with 15 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 衚 mean?
衚 (hú) means recklessly, foolishly; wildly.
How do you pronounce 衚?
衚 is pronounced hú, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 衚?
The radical of 衚 is 行, which carries the idea of "to go". Dictionaries list 衚 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 衚?
衚 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 胡, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Why does 衚 have 行 wrapped around 胡?
行 is the semantic part and relates to walking or roads, and 胡 gives the sound hú. The character was built to write the word for a lane you walk along.
Will I see 衚 in modern texts?
Rarely. You may see 衚衕 on old signs, in traditional character texts, or in historical writing, but simplified Chinese uses 胡同 instead.