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涂鸦 (tú yā) — to create graffiti; to scribble carelessly; to write poorly

Definition

涂鸦 (tú yā) is a verb meaning 'to scribble or scrawl' — used both for street graffiti and for careless, messy writing. As a noun, it can also refer to the scribbles themselves.

verb
to create graffitito scribble carelesslyto write poorly

Examples

  • 涂鸦，。
    Tā zài qiáng shàng tú yā, bèi jǐng chá zhuā zhù le.
    He was caught by the police for painting graffiti on the wall.
  • 涂鸦。
    Zhè běn bǐ jì běn shàng quán shì xiǎo hái zi de tú yā.
    This notebook is full of children's scribbles.
  • ，涂鸦。
    Tā de shū fǎ hěn chà, jiǎn zhí shì zài tú yā.
    His calligraphy is terrible — it's practically just scrawling.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

涂túdaub
鸦yācrow

“涂鸦” joins “涂” (daub) and “鸦” (crow), evoking rough marks like a crow's footprints.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
余
余yú涂tú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

涂 has 氵 on the left, a form of 水 meaning water, and 余 on the right for the sound.

Open 涂 →

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 鴉; 鸦 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
鳥鳥niǎobird
Sound part声符shēngfú
牙
牙yá鴉yā
Same sound today

The traditional form 鴉 pairs 牙 as a sound part with 鳥, meaning bird; the simplified 鸦 is a later abbreviation and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 鸦 →
Appears in
Art & Fine Arts

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