读 (dú): to read, to read aloud, to study, to attend (school), comma, phrase marked by pause
读 (dú) is a Chinese character meaning “to read.” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 讠 (structural) and 卖 (structural). It ranks #752 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 读 to show off 卖 one's literacy 讠. Its radical form 讠 (speech) appears in many related characters such as 认 (rèn, to recognize, to admit), 记 (jì, to remember, to record), 识 (shí, to know, knowledge).
Definitions
- to read
- to read aloud
- to study
- to attend (school)
- comma
- phrase marked by pause
Etymology & Origin
ideographicTo show off 卖 one's literacy 讠
Decomposition: ⿰讠卖 (layout: left-right)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 读 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 读
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 读书verb | dú shū | to read a book | 1 |
| 阅读verb | yuè dú | to read | 4 |
| 读者noun | dú zhě | reader | 4 |
| 解读verb | jiě dú | to decipher | 6 |
| 朗读verb | lǎng dú | to read aloud | 6 |
| 就读verb | jiù dú | to go to school | 6 |
| 读音noun | dú yīn | pronunciation | 5 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 宣读verb | xuān dú | to read out loud to an audience |
| 读数noun | dú shù | reading |
| 读取verb | dú qǔ | (of a computer etc) to read (data) |
| 读物noun | dú wù | reading material |
| 读出 | dú chū | to read out loud |
| 诵读verb | sòng dú | to read aloud |
| 拜读verb | bài dú | (polite) to read (sth) |
| 重读verb | zhòng dú | stress (on a syllable) |
| 读报 | dú bào | to read newspapers |
| 攻读verb | gōng dú | to major (in a field) |
| 在读verb | zài dú | to be studying (at a school or research institute) |
| 读后感noun | dú hòu gǎn | impression of a book |
| 读书人noun | dú shū rén | scholar |
| 读书会noun | dú shū huì | study group |
| 研读verb | yán dú | to study attentively (a book) |
读 appears in 100 compound words: 28 as the first character, 54 as the last, and 18 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 读 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (4)
Example Sentences
他读论自由，但也要注意言辞得当。
tā dòu lún zì yóu , dàn yě yāo zhù yì yán cí dé dāng .
He reads On Liberty, but he must also be mindful of his choice of words.
读家观点/总统国情报告 重点在实问实答
dòu jiā guàn diǎn zǒng tǒng guó qíng bào gào chóng diǎn zài shí wèn shí dā
Reader's point of view/President's State of the Union Report The focus is on asking and answering real questions
亚洲码和欧洲码的尺码单位区别?一文读懂不再买错
yà zhōu mǎ hé ōu zhōu mǎ de chǐ mǎ dān wèi qū bié ? yī wén dòu dǒng bù zài mǎi cuò
What is the difference between Asian and European sizes? Read the article and buy it wrong
...点/美国队如何断加拿大连霸梦?三个维度解读史诗对决
. . . diǎn měi guó duì rú hé duàn jiā ná dà lián bà mèng ? sān gè wéi dù jiě dòu shǐ shī duì jué
... Point/How did the U.S. team break Canada's dream of winning back-to-back championships? Interpret the epic showdown in three dimensions
爱读书的工地大叔走红后第一个春节:继续种地、...
ài dòu shū de gōng dì dà shū zǒu hóng hòu dì yī gè chūn jié : jì xù zhǒng dì , . . .
The first Spring Festival after the uncle on the construction site who loves to read became popular: continue to farm、...
海报荐读|“马上”体祝福里的民生期盼;AI“灵魂...
hǎi bào jiàn dòu mǎ shàng tǐ zhù fú lǐ de mín shēng qī pàn ; A I líng hún . . .
Poster Recommendation|" Immediately, "feel the expectations of people's livelihood in the blessing; AI "soul...
读这种的书有什么用？
Dú zhèzhǒng de shū yǒu shénme yòng?
What is the good of reading such books?
你们怎么读这个词？
Nǐmen zěnme dú zhège cí?
How do you say this word?
你会读这个汉字吗？
Nǐ huì dú zhège hànzì ma?
Can you read this kanji?
为什么你想到外国读书？
Wèishénme nǐ xiǎngdào wàiguó dúshū?
Why do you want to study abroad?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 读 (dú) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 读 have?
What is the radical of 读?
What are the components of 读?
What are common words containing 读?
What characters sound the same as 读 (dú)?
Is 读 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 读 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.