挑 Stroke Order — How to Write 挑
挑 is written in 9 strokes, following the standard Chinese stroke order. Start from the radical 扌, then complete the remaining strokes.
Stroke order matters in Chinese: it keeps the character balanced, and it is how dictionaries and handwriting input methods expect a character to be written.
挑 Radical and Character Components
挑 is a phono-semantic compound: 扌 (hand) carries the meaning, while 兆 indicates the sound.
Radical: 扌 + 6 more strokes
挑 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- tiāo
- tiǎo
Meanings of 挑 in Chinese
1
tiāo挑
To carry something (like soil or goods) on a shoulder pole, typically with loads suspended from both ends.
他每天都挑着水去地里浇菜。
He carries water to the field to water the vegetables every day.
To carry something by balancing it on a shoulder pole; to shoulder a load.
农民伯伯肩上挑着一担沉甸甸的蔬菜，走在回家的路上。
The farmer, with a heavy load of vegetables balanced on a shoulder pole, was walking on his way home.
To dig out or pick, especially edible wild plants or weeds from the ground.
奶奶喜欢在春天去田边挑荠菜。
Grandma likes to go to the field edge to pick shepherd's purse in spring.
A unit of measure, referring to things carried on a shoulder pole, typically a pair of baskets or bundles.
老王肩上挑着一挑儿刚从地里摘下来的蔬菜,准备拿到镇上去卖。
Old Wang, with a pole-load of fresh vegetables just picked from the field on his shoulder, was ready to take them to the town to sell.
To choose; to pick; to select.
我喜欢仔细挑选新鲜的水果。
I like to carefully select fresh fruits.
Frivolous; flighty; wanton (same as '佻' tiāo)
他的行为有些轻挑。
His behavior is a bit frivolous.
2
tiǎo挑
To lift or prop up something (like a curtain) with one end of a pole or stick.
她挑起帘子，向外望去。
She lifted the curtain and looked out.
To poke, prod, or pick something out using a stick-like or pointed object.
他用筷子把面条挑起来了。
He picked up the noodles with his chopsticks.
To stir up, provoke, or initiate; to incite or instigate.
他总是喜欢在团队项目中挑头，带领大家完成任务。
He always likes to take the lead in team projects, guiding everyone to complete the tasks.
Common Words and Phrases with 挑
1
to sow discord; to instigate; to stir up trouble between people.
他总是喜欢在同事之间挑拨离间，导致大家互相猜疑。
He always likes to sow discord among colleagues, causing everyone to suspect each other.
2
To sow discord and cause alienation among people; to stir up trouble and create rifts between individuals or groups.
她总喜欢在同事之间挑拨离间，导致大家互相猜忌，工作氛围很紧张。
She always likes to sow discord among colleagues, leading to mutual suspicion and a tense work environment.
3
to pick out; to select
这个房间的窗台是直接从墙体挑出的，形成了额外的置物空间。
The windowsill in this room is directly corbelled out from the wall, creating extra storage space.
4
to find faults or errors; to point out mistakes
他总是喜欢挑错别人的小失误。
He always likes to find fault with others' minor mistakes.
5
To bear the main responsibility or play a leading role.
在这个新项目中，张经理挑大梁，负责整体规划和实施。
In this new project, Manager Zhang is taking the main responsibility for overall planning and implementation.
6
To carry a load on a shoulder pole.
他每天早上都挑担去市场卖菜。
Every morning, he carries a load on a shoulder pole to the market to sell vegetables.
7
To trim a lamp wick; to light a lamp; to work or study by lamplight.
夜深了，他仍旧挑灯夜读，为即将到来的考试做准备。
It was late at night, but he still trimmed his lamp and read, preparing for the upcoming exam.
8
To trim a lamp and stir the fire; to work late into the night diligently.
小张总是喜欢在同事之间挑灯拨火，搞得大家关系很紧张。
Xiao Zhang always likes to sow discord among his colleagues, making their relationships very tense.
9
To stir, poke, or incite; also to dredge.
她的言语常常会不经意间挑动起听众的好奇心。
Her words often inadvertently stir up the audience's curiosity.
10
to tease; to provoke; to tantalize
他喜欢用玩笑话挑逗她，看她脸红的样子
He enjoys teasing her with jokes, seeing her blush.
11
to be picky and choose only what is advantageous or beneficial to oneself; to pick and choose for personal gain.
新来的员工总是挑肥拣瘦，只愿意做轻松的活儿。
The new employee always picks and chooses, only wanting to do the easy tasks.
12
A porter; a person who carries goods or luggage for a living.
山路崎岖，挑夫们肩负重担，艰难地向上攀登。
The mountain path was rugged, and the porters, carrying heavy loads on their shoulders, climbed with difficulty.
13
A type of embroidery (e.g., cross-stitch) or a weaving technique for creating patterns by lifting warp threads.
奶奶年轻时擅长挑花，她做的枕套和桌布都非常精美。
Grandma was skilled at 'Piao Hua' when she was young; the pillowcases and tablecloths she made were all exquisite.
14
to pick and choose; to select; to sort out
妈妈仔细地挑拣着最新鲜的蔬菜。
Mom carefully picked out the freshest vegetables.
15
to carry loads or luggage for others
他年轻时为了补贴家用，经常在码头给人挑脚
When he was young, to supplement the family income, he often worked as a porter carrying goods for others at the dock.
More words with 挑
- liào撂tiāo挑zǐ子to quit, to walk off the job
- shuāi摔tiāo挑zi子walk off the job, quit
- tiǎo挑zhàn战Challenge, Dare
- tiáo挑qǐ起provoke, incite
- shòu瘦gāo高tiǎo挑ér儿Tall and slender, Slim and tall
- tiāo挑shí食Picky eater, Fussy eater
- tiāo挑ti剔picky, fussy
- tiǎo挑tóu头lead, take the lead
- tiǎo挑xìn衅Provocation, Challenge
- tiǎo挑kāi开pry open, part
- tiāo挑xuǎn选choose, select
- tiǎo挑zhàn战zhě者challenger, contender
- ài爱tiāo挑ti剔Picky, Fussy
- tiǎo挑cì刺nitpick, find fault
- tiāo挑cì刺ér儿To nitpick, To find fault
- tiǎo挑dào到picked, chosen
- tiǎo挑zhàn战xìng性Challenging, Challenge
- qīng轻tiǎo挑Frivolous, Flighty
- tiǎo挑dēng灯yè夜dú读burn the midnight oil, study late into the night
- tiāo挑ér儿load on a shoulder pole, troublesome matter
Idioms with 挑
- tiǎo挑bō拨shān煽huò惑sow discord and instigate trouble
- tiāo挑jīng精jiǎn拣féi肥pick and choose the best parts
- tiāo挑máo毛jiǎn拣cì刺to nitpick and find fault
- tiāo挑máo毛tī剔cì刺to nitpick and find fault
- tiāo挑sān三jiǎn拣sì四overly particular or fussy
- tiǎo挑sān三wō窝sì四sow discord and stir up trouble
- tiāo挑tiāo挑jiǎn拣jiǎn拣pick and choose carefully
- tiāo挑tiāo挑ti剔tī剔to be excessively particular or critical
- tiāo挑xuě雪tián填jǐng井make a fruitless effort
- tiāo挑zhēn针dǎ打yǎn眼nitpick or criticize harshly
- tiāo挑zì字yǎn眼er儿nitpick over words
- bǎi百lǐ里tiāo挑yī一one in a hundred
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Open the tool →Questions about 挑
What does 挑 mean in Chinese?
挑 (tiāo) means “To dig out or pick” in Chinese.
How do you pronounce 挑?
挑 has 2 pronunciations: tiāo, tiǎo.
How many strokes does 挑 have?
挑 has 9 strokes.
How do you write 挑?
挑 is written in 9 strokes, starting from the radical 扌. See the animated stroke order on this page.
What is the radical of 挑?
The radical of 挑 is 扌, and 挑 is a phono-semantic compound.
