逗 (dòu) is a Chinese character meaning “to tease”. It is written from 辶 (walk; go — the "movement" radical (chuò)) and 豆 (bean; legume), one enclosing the other, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “to tease; to stay”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
辶 + 豆
Enclosing structure
Structure from: 说文解字: 逗，止也。从辵，豆聲。IDS ⿺辶豆 经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–6 为「豆」，笔画 7–9 为「辶」（点、横折折撇、平捺）
Memory aid
You are walking along (辶) when you spot a bowl of beans (豆). You stop and linger over it — that pause is 逗, like the pause of a comma (逗号).
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 逗号dòu hàocomma逗 = dòu
- 逗留dòu liúto stay for a while; to stop over逗 = dòu
Go deeper
All readings
to tease; to stay
to tease; to amuse; to stay for a while; to pause (as in a comma)
引逗、逗弄；使人发笑；停留；句中的停顿。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 逗号dòu hàocomma逗 = dòu
- 逗留dòu liúto stay for a while; to stop over逗 = dòu
Sound component
豆 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 逗 mean?
逗 (dòu) means to tease; to amuse; to stay for a while; to pause (as in a comma).
How do you pronounce 逗?
It is pronounced dòu.
What parts is 逗 made of?
辶 (walk; go — the "movement" radical (chuò)) and 豆 (bean; legume), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字: 逗，止也。从辵，豆聲。IDS ⿺辶豆 经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：笔画 0–6 为「豆」，笔画 7–9 为「辶」（点、横折折撇、平捺）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 逗 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 逗?
辶. 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 逗?
Common ones are 逗号 and 逗留. The reading of 逗 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.