捅 (tǒng) is a Chinese character meaning “to poke”. It is written from 扌 (hand (radical form)) and 甬 (walled passage (as in 甬道); a common sound component), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to poke; to jab”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
扌 + 甬
Left–right structure
- 扌 hand (radical form) · shǒu meaning
- 甬 walled passage (as in 甬道); a common sound component · yǒng sound
Structure from: 现代字形对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：扌 3 画 + 甬 7 画 = 10 画；甬为 通/桶/痛/涌 共用声符
Memory aid
A hand (扌) jabbing into a narrow walled passage (甬) — you poke a stick straight through.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 捅破tǒng pòto poke a hole through; to lay bare (a secret)捅 = tǒng
- 捅娄子tǒng lóu zito make a mess of things; to get into trouble捅 = tǒng
Go deeper
All readings
to poke; to jab
to poke; to jab; to stab; to stir up (trouble); to disclose; to let out (a secret)
用棍、手指等戳或扎；也指惹出（麻烦），或揭露、说破。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 捅破tǒng pòto poke a hole through; to lay bare (a secret)捅 = tǒng
- 捅娄子tǒng lóu zito make a mess of things; to get into trouble捅 = tǒng
Sound component
甬 family onset shift
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 捅 mean?
捅 (tǒng) means to poke; to jab; to stab; to stir up (trouble); to disclose; to let out (a secret).
How do you pronounce 捅?
It is pronounced tǒng.
What parts is 捅 made of?
扌 (hand (radical form)) and 甬 (walled passage (as in 甬道); a common sound component), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画：扌 3 画 + 甬 7 画 = 10 画；甬为 通/桶/痛/涌 共用声符. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 捅 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 捅?
扌. 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 捅?
Common ones are 捅破 and 捅娄子. The reading of 捅 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.