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告

gào
verb HSK 7-9 #2,623

Meanings

  1. 1 to tell; to inform
  2. 2 to announce; to declare
  3. 3 to sue; to accuse

Examples

我告诉你一个秘密。
Wǒ gàosu nǐ yī gè mìmì.
I'll tell you a secret.
广告太多了。
Guǎnggào tài duō le.
There are too many ads.
他要告我。
Tā yào gào wǒ.
He is going to sue me.

Tips

usage
告 is used in: 告诉 (to tell), 广告 (advertisement), 报告 (report), 告别 (to say goodbye), 警告 (warning), 公告 (public notice). The legal meaning 'to sue' is still active: 原告 (plaintiff), 被告 (defendant).

Components

radical
口 kǒu
mouth
Bottom mouth radical (Kangxi #30) — the indexing radical. Carries the speech-act core: 告 is announcing, reporting, accusing — all things spoken aloud. Same radical anchors 喊, 叫, 问, 号 — the family of vocal acts and announcements.
semantic
牛 niú
ox; cow
Top component is graphically 牛 'ox', though some readings see it as a stylized horn shape jammed into a mouth (sacrificial calling). In the original oracle-bone form 告 showed an ox or horn over 口, picturing the act of announcing a sacrifice — speaking with an ox-as-offering. The four strokes in this stylized 牛 are the same as standalone 牛.

Stroke Order

告 gào