拖

拕
tuō
㐌 + 扌
HSK 3.0Level 6

Definitions

tuō (verb) to drag; to tow
tuō (verb) to delay; to drag on
tuō (verb) to mop (the floor)

Etymology phono-semantic

hand

Semantic: 扌

About

拖 is a phono-semantic compound combining the hand radical 扌 (shǒu) on the left, which marks it as a verb involving the hands, and the phonetic component 𠂢 (yǐ) on the right. Historically, 𠂢 carried the idea of something stretching out or trailing behind. The original meaning is dragging or pulling a heavy object along the ground. Because such an action slows progress, the character's meaning broadened to delaying or stalling a process, which led to its modern use for procrastination or extending a deadline.

Example Sentences Hide

妈妈在拖地板。

Māmā zài tuō dìbǎn.

Mom is mopping the floor.

他经常拖延时间。

Tā jīngcháng tuōyán shíjiān.

He often delays time.

不要拖拉，快点做作业。

Bùyào tuōlā, kuài diǎn zuò zuòyè.

Don't procrastinate, do your homework quickly.

这辆车需要拖走。

Zhè liàng chē xūyào tuō zǒu.

This car needs to be towed away.

他拖累整个团队。

Tā tuōlěi zhěnggè tuánduì.

He burdened the whole team.

她拖着沉重的行李箱。

Tā tuō zhe chénzhòng de xínglǐxiāng.

She is dragging a heavy suitcase.

拖延症会影响工作效率。

Tuōyánzhèng huì yǐngxiǎng gōngzuò xiàolǜ.

Procrastination can affect work efficiency.

经济危机拖慢了发展速度。

Jīngjì wēijī tuō màn le fāzhǎn sùdù.

The economic crisis slowed down the development speed.

Related Characters

Component: 㐌

施 迤 絁 陁 粚 沲 駞 柂

Component: 扌

把 提 打 报 接 指 据 拉 持 技 找 推 投 护

Example Words

拍拖 拖鞋 拖住 拖地 拖家带口 拖延 拖延症 拖后腿 拖把 拖拉 拖拉机 拖拖拉拉 拖欠 拖沓 拖泥带水 拖累 拖走 拖车 布拖 拖下水 拖儿带女 拖动 拖地板 拖垮