舌头 meaning in English
tongue; enemy soldier captured for the purpose of extracting information
Meaning of 舌头
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- tongue
- enemy soldier captured for the purpose of extracting information
Measure word: 個|个
How to use 舌头
舌头 is the everyday spoken word for tongue. 舌 alone appears in set phrases and formal words. Example: 我不小心咬到舌头了。(Wǒ bù xiǎoxīn yǎo dào shétou le.) I accidentally bit my tongue.
舌 (shé) means tongue, and 头 (tou) is a common noun suffix, just like in 石头 (shítou) stone and 木头 (mùtou) wood. Picture 舌 as a tongue poking out of a mouth, which is the 口 at the bottom.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 舌头 (shétou) with 石头 (shítou) stone because they sound close. Remember 舌 is shé with a second tone and an e sound, while 石 is shí. Also 头 here is neutral tone, so say shétou, not shé tóu.
舌头 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
舌 shé · tongue · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
头 tóu · head · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Related words
Words that share a character with 舌头.
| 头发 | tóufa | hair (on the head) |
| 里头 | lǐtou | inside; interior |
| 点头 | diǎntóu | to nod |
| 石头 | shítou | stone |
| 头脑 | tóunǎo | brains; mind |
| 木头 | mùtou | wood; log (CL:塊|块[kuai4],根[gen1]); (fig.) blockhead; dolt |
| 老头儿 | lǎotóur | see 老頭子|老头子[lao3 tou2 zi5] |
| 镜头 | jìngtóu | camera lens; camera shot (in a movie etc) |
| 骨头 | gǔtou | bone; moral character |
| 后头 | hòutou | behind; the back |
| 前头 | qiántou | in front; at the head |
| 回头 | huítóu | to turn round; to turn one's head; later; by and by |
Questions about 舌头
What does 舌头 mean?
舌头 (shétou) means "tongue; enemy soldier captured for the purpose of extracting information" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 舌头?
舌头 is made of 2 characters: 舌 (6 strokes), 头 (5 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 舌头 an HSK word?
Yes. 舌头 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 舌头 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 舌头 is written 舌頭.
What does 舌头 mean in a military context?
In military slang, 舌头 can mean an enemy soldier captured to get information. A phrase like 抓舌头 (zhuā shétou) means to capture a prisoner for interrogation. This sense is mostly found in war stories and films.
How do you say someone talks too much or gossips using 舌?
Chinese uses 舌 in idioms about speech. 长舌 (chángshé), literally long tongue, describes a gossip, and 嚼舌头 (jiáo shétou) means to gossip or talk nonsense about others.