托

託

tuō

乇 + 扌

HSK 3.0Level 7

Frequency#799

Definitions

tuō (verb) to support; to prop up

tuō (verb) to hold in one's hand; to carry

tuō (verb) to entrust; to rely on

tuō (particle) thanks to

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 扌 represents the meaning and 乇 represents the sound.

About

The traditional character "託" is constructed from the speech radical (言) alongside the component "乇", historically representing acts of entrusting or delivering a message through words. The character "托" incorporates the hand radical (扌) with the same phonetic element "乇", originally referring to the physical action of holding up or supporting something with the hand. Through historical usage, the meaning of "托" broadened to encompass abstract notions of entrustment and pretext, thereby assimilating the conceptual domain of "託" while retaining its foundational sense of manual support.

Etymology Hide

Bronze Early Warring States (~400 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Western Jin dynasty (266-316 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我托他买一本书。

Wǒ tuō tā mǎi yī běn shū.

I asked him to buy a book.

请你托住这个盘子。

Qǐng nǐ tuō zhù zhè ge pánzi.

Please hold this plate.

她托朋友照顾她的猫。

Tā tuō péngyou zhàogù tā de māo.

She asked her friend to take care of her cat.

爸爸把重要文件托付给律师。

Bàba bǎ zhòngyào wénjiàn tuōfù gěi lǜshī.

Dad entrusted the important documents to the lawyer.

在托儿所里，孩子们玩得很开心。

Zài tuō'érsuǒ lǐ, háizimen wán de hěn kāixīn.

In the nursery, the children are playing very happily.

他用托盘端来了咖啡和蛋糕。

Tā yòng tuōpán duān lái le kāfēi hé dàngāo.

He brought coffee and cake on a tray.

由于时间紧迫，我们必须托运行李。

Yóuyú shíjiān jǐnpò, wǒmen bìxū tuōyùn xínglǐ.

Due to time constraints, we must check in our luggage.

政府托管的资金必须用于公共福利。

Zhèngfǔ tuōguǎn de zījīn bìxū yòng yú gōnggòng fúlì.

The funds held in trust by the government must be used for public welfare.

Related Characters

Component: 乇

Component: 扌

托