About
The character "捣" originates from a traditional form, "搗", which structurally combines the hand radical (扌) on the left, indicating a hand-related action, with "島" (island) on the right, primarily serving a phonetic function while also possibly evoking the sense of a solid, mound-like object. Its core meaning has consistently centered on the action of pounding, hammering, or stirring with a downward motion, as one would with a pestle in a mortar. From this concrete physical action, its usage expanded into more abstract and figurative territories, giving rise to verbs meaning to harass, to disturb, or to cause trouble, as in "捣乱", metaphorically extending the sense of poking and disrupting a settled state. The simplified form retained the hand radical but replaced the complex "島" with the simpler "鸟" (niǎo, bird), a change that was likely driven by graphical convenience rather than a shift in semantic content.
Example Sentences Hide
妹妹在捣蛋。
别捣乱，我在工作。
孩子们喜欢捣蛋。
他用锤子捣碎了核桃。
捣乱分子会被处罚。
虽然弟弟很调皮，但他不是故意捣乱。
在实验室里，我们常用研钵捣碎样品。
捣碎这些香料是为了让菜肴更美味。