吵 (chǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “to make a noise”. It is written from 口 (mouth) and 少 (few; little), side by side, and takes 7 strokes.
Build the character for “to make a noise; to quarrel”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
口 + 少
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分：hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（口 3 画 + 少 4 画 = 7 画）
Memory aid
A mouth (口) that leaves you few (少) quiet moments — it keeps going until the noise turns into a quarrel.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 吵架chǎo jiàto quarrel; to have a row吵 = chǎo
- 吵闹chǎo nàonoisy; to make a racket吵 = chǎo
Go deeper
All readings
to make a noise; to quarrel
to make a noise; to be noisy; to disturb with noise; to quarrel
发出让人不安的响声；也指大声争执。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 吵架chǎo jiàto quarrel; to have a row吵 = chǎo
- 吵闹chǎo nàonoisy; to make a racket吵 = chǎo
Sound component
少 family onset shift
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 吵 mean?
吵 (chǎo) means to make a noise; to be noisy; to disturb with noise; to quarrel.
How do you pronounce 吵?
It is pronounced chǎo.
What parts is 吵 made of?
口 (mouth) and 少 (few; little), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分：hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（口 3 画 + 少 4 画 = 7 画）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 吵 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 吵?
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 吵?
Common ones are 吵架 and 吵闹. The reading of 吵 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.