搔痒 (sāoyǎng): to scratch (an itch)

Meanings

1 to scratch (an itch)
2 to tickle

Characters

搔

Examples

蚊子咬过的地方一直想搔痒。

Wénzi yǎo guò de dìfāng yīzhí xiǎng sāoyǎng.

I keep wanting to scratch where the mosquito bit me.

他用羽毛搔痒小猫的肚子。

Tā yòng yǔmáo sāoyǎng xiǎo māo de dùzi.

He tickled the kitten's belly with a feather.

Tips

usage

搔痒 covers both scratching your own itch and tickling someone else. The idiom 隔靴搔痒 (lit. "scratching an itch through your boot") means tackling a problem so indirectly it has no effect — a very common figurative use.

Stroke Order

搔 sāo

痒 yǎng

Related Words

隔靴搔痒 géxuēsāoyǎng

to scratch an itch from outside the boot / to address an issue superficially; ineffective; beside the point

挠痒 náoyǎng #27,425

to scratch an itch / to tickle

to scratch (an itch) / to claw at

发痒 fāyǎng #26,573

to itch / to feel itchy / to tickle

瘙痒 sàoyǎng

itching / itchiness / pruritus

搔首弄姿 sāoshǒunòngzī #33,863

to strike a coquettish pose / to play up one's looks / to preen and pose affectedly

七年之痒 qīniánzhīyǎng

the seven-year itch / marital restlessness around the seven-year mark

嗓子痒 sǎngziyǎng

itchy throat / one's throat tickles