拙 (zhuō) is a Chinese character meaning “clumsy”. It is written from 扌 (hand (radical form)) and 出 (to go out; to come out), side by side, and takes 8 strokes.
Build the character for “clumsy”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
扌 + 出
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字·手部：拙，不巧也。从手出聲
Memory aid
A hand (扌) that keeps sticking out (出) where it shouldn't — knocking things over. That is what clumsy looks like.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
8 strokes
In real words
- 笨拙bèn zhuōclumsy; awkward; unskilful拙 = zhuō
- 拙劣zhuō lièclumsy and inferior; crude; poorly done拙 = zhuō
Go deeper
All readings
clumsy
clumsy; awkward; unskilful; (humble) my own (writing, opinion)
笨，不灵巧。也用作谦辞，称自己的东西（拙作、拙见）。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 笨拙bèn zhuōclumsy; awkward; unskilful拙 = zhuō
- 拙劣zhuō lièclumsy and inferior; crude; poorly done拙 = zhuō
Sound component
出 family diverged
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 拙 mean?
拙 (zhuō) means clumsy; awkward; unskilful; (humble) my own (writing, opinion).
How do you pronounce 拙?
It is pronounced zhuō.
What parts is 拙 made of?
扌 (hand (radical form)) and 出 (to go out; to come out), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字·手部：拙，不巧也。从手出聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 拙 have?
8. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 拙?
手. 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 拙?
Common ones are 笨拙 and 拙劣. The reading of 拙 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.