駝 meaning and stroke order
Camel; humpback; to carry on one's back
How to write 駝, 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.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
Meaning of 駝
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- hump or hunchbacked
- camel
How 駝 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Horse.
馬 gives the meaning and 它 hints at the sound.
Radical: 馬 (horse), shared by 47 characters on this site.
How to remember 駝
駝 is a pictophonetic character: 馬 (mǎ, horse) on the left gives the meaning of a large riding or pack animal, and 它 (tā) on the right hints at the sound tuó. Picture a horse-like animal with a hump that carries loads across the desert.
駝 rarely appears alone. It mostly shows up in words like 駱駝 (luòtuo, camel), 駝背 (tuóbèi, hunchbacked), and 駝鹿 (tuólù, moose). Example: 沙漠裡有很多駱駝。(Shāmò lǐ yǒu hěn duō luòtuo.) There are many camels in the desert.
Common mistake: Learners often read 駝 as tā because of the 它 component, but the sound is tuó with a second tone. In 駱駝 (luòtuo) the second syllable is usually said in the neutral tone, not a full tuó.
Common words with 駝
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
Questions about 駝
How many strokes are in 駝?
駝 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 駝 mean?
駝 (tuó) means camel; humpback; to carry on one's back. A common word with it is 骆驼 (luòtuo), meaning "camel (CL:峰[feng1],匹[pi3],頭|头[tou2]); (coll.) blockhead; ninny".
How do you pronounce 駝?
駝 is pronounced tuó, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 駝?
The radical of 駝 is 馬, which carries the idea of "horse". Dictionaries list 駝 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 駝?
駝 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 驼, used in mainland China and Singapore.
How do you say someone has a hunched back using 駝?
Use 駝背 (tuóbèi), as in 他有點駝背 (tā yǒudiǎn tuóbèi), he stoops a little. 駝 can also work as a verb meaning to become hunched, as in 背駝了 (bèi tuó le), his back has become bent.
Why does 駱駝 also mean a blockhead?
In colloquial speech, 駱駝 can be used to call someone slow or dim-witted, a bit like calling them a ninny. It is informal and teasing, so avoid it in polite situations.