verb #14,484

Meanings

  1. 1 to filter
  2. 2 to strain

Examples

HSK 7-9
Bǎ tāng lǜ yīxià, qùdiào zhāzi.
Strain the soup to remove the sediment.
HSK 7-9
Zhège jìngshuǐqì néng lǜ diào zázhì.
This water purifier can filter out impurities.

Tips

usage
Commonly used in compounds: 过滤 (to filter), 滤镜 (filter/lens - also used for photo filters on social media), 滤网 (filter screen), 滤嘴 (cigarette filter).

Components

radical
shuǐ
water (left-side form)
Three-drop water radical on the left fixes the action: filtering is something done to liquids. Same radical drives the whole water-handling family - wash, flow, pour, strain.
phonetic
consider; worry
Right side supplies the sound: lǜ → lǜ (exact match). 's sense of 'sifting through thoughts' transfers nicely as a memory hook - filtering water is to liquid what considering carefully is to ideas, separating the wanted from the unwanted.

Stroke Order