鸭 meaning and stroke order
Duck; Anas species (various)
How to write 鸭, stroke by stroke
10 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 鸭
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- duck (CL:隻|只[zhi1])
- (slang) male prostitute
How 鸭 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Bird.
鸟 gives the meaning and 甲 hints at the sound.
Radical: 鸟 (bird), shared by 72 characters on this site.
How to remember 鸭
鸭 is a bird 鸟 (niǎo) with 甲 (jiǎ) on the left giving the sound. Picture a bird wearing a hard shell of armor 甲, waddling like a plump duck.
In everyday speech people usually say 鸭子 (yāzi) for a live duck, while 鸭 alone appears in food words like 烤鸭 (kǎoyā) and 鸭肉 (yāròu). Example: 我想吃北京烤鸭。 (Wǒ xiǎng chī Běijīng kǎoyā.) I want to eat Peking roast duck.
Common mistake: Learners often read the phonetic 甲 and say jiǎ, or use third tone, but 鸭 is first tone yā. Also do not confuse it with 鸦 (yā, crow), which has 牙 on the left instead of 甲.
Common words with 鸭
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
鸭 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 鸭
How many strokes are in 鸭?
鸭 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 鸭 mean?
鸭 (yā) means duck; Anas species (various). A common word with it is 鸭子 (yāzi), meaning "duck (CL:隻|只[zhi1]); (slang) male prostitute".
How do you pronounce 鸭?
鸭 is pronounced yā, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 鸭?
The radical of 鸭 is 鸟, which carries the idea of "bird". Dictionaries list 鸭 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 鸭?
The traditional form of 鸭 is 鴨. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 鸭 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 鸭 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 鸭 is part of the HSK 5 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What measure word do I use with 鸭子?
Use 只 (zhī), as in 一只鸭子 (yì zhī yāzi), one duck. This is the standard measure word for most birds and small animals.
Is it safe to call someone 鸭子?
Be careful. In slang 鸭子 or 鸭 can mean a male prostitute, so calling a man this can be insulting. Talking about ducks or duck dishes is perfectly normal.