呕吐 (ǒu tù) — to vomit | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Formal, written/clinical word for 'to vomit.' 吐 is the everyday spoken alternative.

verb

to vomit

Examples

呕吐。
Tā yīn wèi yùn chē ér ǒu tù.
He vomited because of motion sickness.
，呕吐。
Chī le yào zhī hòu, tā zhōng yú bú zài ǒu tù le.
After taking the medicine, he finally stopped vomiting.
呕吐，。
ǒu tù Zhī hòu, tā jué de shū fu le yì xiē.
After vomiting, he felt a bit more comfortable.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

'呕' and '吐' both refer to throwing up, forming the word for vomit.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 嘔; 呕 is its simplified writing.

口區嘔

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

區

區qū嘔òu

Same sound today

The traditional form 嘔 has 口 (mouth) and 區 as a sound part; this explains 嘔, not the form 呕.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

口土吐

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

土

土tǔ吐tǔ

Same sound today

吐 pairs 口, the mouth, with 土, which gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Illness & Symptoms 5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.