摔 (shuāi): to fall down; to tumble

Meanings

1 to fall down; to tumble
2 to throw down; to slam
3 to drop and break

Characters

摔

shuāi

to fall; to drop; to smash

Examples

小心，别摔了！

Xiǎoxīn, bié shuāi le!

Be careful, don't fall!

他气得把手机摔了。

Tā qì de bǎshǒu jī shuāi le.

He was so angry he slammed his phone down.

杯子摔碎了。

Bēizi shuāi suì le.

The cup fell and shattered.

我在冰上摔了一跤。

Wǒ zài bīngshàng shuāi le yī jiāo.

I slipped and fell on the ice.

Tips

usage

摔 has three main meanings: (1) to fall (摔倒), (2) to throw/slam down in anger (摔门, slam a door), (3) to drop and break (摔碎). Context makes it clear.

memory

The hand radical 扌shows the throwing meaning, while 率 (shuài) provides the sound.

Components

radical

扌 shǒu

hand

Left hand radical, side-form of 手 — the indexing radical. Marks 摔 as a forceful manual action: slamming, hurling, dropping. Even when 摔 means 'to fall down' (摔倒), the verb keeps a sense of impact — you don't just sink, you smack the ground. Same family: 扔 throw, 推 push, 拍 slap.

phonetic

率 shuài

lead; rate (here phonetic)

Right side 率 supplies the sound — shuài → shuāi with only a tone shift. Pure phonetic carrier; the 'lead, rate' meanings of 率 contribute nothing here. The visual coincidence of a leader hurling something works as a serviceable learner mnemonic, but historically 率 was chosen for its sound, not its semantics.