沼

zhǎo
noun #12,292

Meanings

  1. 1 pond
  2. 2 pool
  3. 3 marsh

Examples

HSK 6
Zhǎoqì kěyǐ yònglái fādiàn.
Marsh gas can be used to generate electricity.
HSK 7-9
Zhǎozédì lǐ yǒu hěnduō wénzi.
There are a lot of mosquitoes in the marshland.

Tips

memory
氵 (water radical) + 召 (to call/summon) - water that summons you in, i.e. a boggy pond. The character almost always appears in compounds: 沼泽 (marsh), 沼气 (methane/marsh gas).

Components

radical
氵 shuǐ
water (radical form of 水)
Left three-drops water radical - the indexing radical. Marks 沼 as standing water rather than flowing: a shallow pool, marsh, or pond. Sits in the water family with 池 (pond), 湖 (lake), 潭 (deep pool), but specifically for boggy / reed-edged water.
phonetic
召 zhào
to summon; call
Right side 召 supplies the sound - zhào with a tone shift to zhǎo. Same phonetic family includes 招 (beckon), 昭 (bright), 照 (illuminate). The 'calling' meaning is purely phonetic baggage here; 沼 stays squarely about water that has gathered and stayed put.

Stroke Order

沼 zhǎo