叨 (dāo) is a Chinese character meaning “to talk on and on”. It is written from 口 (mouth) and 刀 (knife), side by side, and takes 5 strokes.
Build the character for “to chatter on”
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Structure
口 + 刀
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：共5笔，第1–3笔为口，第4–5笔为刀）
Memory aid
A mouth (口) with a knife (刀) beside it: words that keep cutting away at you — on and on and on. Both parts really are in this character, and 刀 dāo also gives the sound.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
5 strokes
In real words
- 唠叨láo daoto nag; to chatter on and on叨 = dāo
- 念叨niàn daoto keep mentioning; to talk about repeatedly叨 = dāo
Go deeper
All readings
to chatter on
to talk on and on; to chatter; used in 唠叨 "to nag" and 念叨 "to keep mentioning"
话多，没完没了地说。多用于「唠叨」「念叨」等词。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 唠叨láo daoto nag; to chatter on and on叨 = dāo
- 念叨niàn daoto keep mentioning; to talk about repeatedly叨 = dāo
Sound component
刀 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 叨 mean?
叨 (dāo) means to talk on and on; to chatter; used in 唠叨 "to nag" and 念叨 "to keep mentioning".
How do you pronounce 叨?
It is pronounced dāo.
What parts is 叨 made of?
口 (mouth) and 刀 (knife), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分（hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：共5笔，第1–3笔为口，第4–5笔为刀）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 叨 have?
5. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 叨?
口. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 叨?
Common ones are 唠叨 and 念叨. The reading of 叨 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.