唾 (tuò) is a Chinese character meaning “saliva”. It is written from 口 (mouth) and 垂 (to hang down; to droop), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “saliva; to spit”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
口 + 垂
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字·口部（唾，口液也。从口垂聲）；现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 核验：11 画 = 口 3 画 + 垂 8 画
Memory aid
A mouth (口) with something hanging down (垂) from it — a drop of spit dangling from the lips. 唾 is saliva, or to spit.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 唾液tuò yèsaliva唾 = tuò
- 唾沫tuò mòsaliva; spit唾 = tuòspoken astuò mo
- 唾弃tuò qìto spurn; to despise and cast aside唾 = tuò
Go deeper
All readings
saliva; to spit
saliva; spittle; to spit; (figuratively) to spit on, to scorn
口腔里分泌的液体；也指吐唾沫，引申为鄙弃。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 唾液tuò yèsaliva唾 = tuò
- 唾沫tuò mòsaliva; spit唾 = tuòspoken astuò mo
- 唾弃tuò qìto spurn; to despise and cast aside唾 = tuò
Sound component
垂 family diverged
Easy to confuse with
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 唾 mean?
唾 (tuò) means saliva; spittle; to spit; (figuratively) to spit on, to scorn.
How do you pronounce 唾?
It is pronounced tuò.
What parts is 唾 made of?
口 (mouth) and 垂 (to hang down; to droop), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字·口部（唾，口液也。从口垂聲）；现代字形以 hanzi-writer-data 核验：11 画 = 口 3 画 + 垂 8 画. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 唾 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 唾?
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 唾?
Common ones are 唾液, 唾沫, 唾弃. The reading of 唾 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.