挲 (suō) · to stroke; to fondle with the hand

Meanings

1 to stroke; to fondle with the hand

Characters

挲

suō

to stroke (in 摩挲)

Examples

HSK 7-9

爷爷摩挲着那块老玉佩，舍不得放下。

Yéye mósuō zhe nà kuài lǎo yùpèi, shěbude fàngxià.

Grandpa kept fondling that old jade pendant, unable to put it down.

Tips

history

挲 is not used independently in modern Chinese. It survives almost only in 摩挲 (to stroke / caress), which also has a colloquial reading māsa. The variant form 挱 is listed for the same word.

Components

radical

手 shǒu

hand

The hand 手 under the phonetic carries the meaning: this is a hand action, stroking and rubbing something with the fingers.

phonetic

沙 shā

sand

沙 sits on top and supplies the sound (shā drifted to suō), the same phonetic seen in 莎 and 娑.

Stroke Order

挲 suō

Related Words

格斗 gédòu #7,314

hand-to-hand combat; fighting / to fight; to grapple

抚摸 fǔmō HSK 7-9 #7,980

to stroke / to caress / to fondle

扶 fú HSK 5 #3,791

to support with the hand; to help sb up / to hold onto for support

递给 dìgěi #5,376

to hand to (someone) / to pass to (someone)

付给 fùgěi #5,445

to pay (someone); to hand over to

剥 bāo HSK 7-9 #5,457

to peel (by hand, of fruit, eggs, nuts) / to shell; to shuck; to skin

帮帮 bāngbang #3,046

to help (informal/pleading) / give a hand

划 huà HSK 6 #2,733

to plan; to map out / to delimit; to demarcate; to assign / to draw (a line); to mark / to transfer (funds, jurisdiction) / stroke of a Chinese character

交给 jiāogěi #1,533

to hand over to / to give to / to entrust to

举手 jǔshǒu #5,949

to raise one's hand