拙 (zhuō) — clumsy, awkward, dull; (humble, used before nouns to refer to one's own) my
Definition
A literary bound form with two distinct uses: meaning 'clumsy, awkward' (as in 拙劣), and as a self-deprecating prefix on nouns (拙作, 拙见) to mean 'my humble…' when referring to one's own work or opinions.
bound form
clumsyawkwarddull(humble, used before nouns to refer to one's own) my
Examples
- 。Zhè jiàn yī fu de zuò gōng tài zhuō liè le.The craftsmanship of this piece of clothing is too crude.
- ，。Zhè shì wǒ de zhuō zuò, qǐng nín duō duō zhǐ jiào.This is my humble work; please give me your kind advice.
- ，拙。Guān yú zhè ge wèn tí, wǒ xiǎng tán yì diǎn zhuō jiàn.On this question, I would like to offer my humble opinion.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
拙 has 扌 (手, hand) on the left and 出 on the right, which gives the sound.
Appears in
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.