摇 (yáo): to shake, to rock, to row, to crank
摇 (yáo) is a Chinese character meaning “to shake.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 扌 (semantic) and 䍃 (phonetic). It ranks #940 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 摇 hand. Its radical form 扌 (hand) appears in many related characters such as 手 (shǒu, hand), 打 (dǎ, hit, make), 找 (zhǎo, to look for).
Definitions
- to shake
- to rock
- to row
- to crank
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 摇 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 摇滚 | yáo gǔn | rock 'n' roll (music) |
| 摇摆 | yáo bǎi | to sway |
| 摇滚乐 | yáo gǔn yuè | rock music |
| 动摇 | dòng yáo | to sway |
| 摇头 | yáo tóu | to shake one's head |
| 摇篮 | yáo lán | cradle (for a baby) |
| 摇晃 | yáo huàng | to rock |
| 摇摆舞 | yáo bǎi wǔ | swing (dance) |
| 摇摆不定 | yáo bǎi bù dìng | indecisive |
| 招摇 | zhāo yáo | to rock back and forth |
| 摇钱树 | yáo qián shù | legendary tree that sheds coins when shaken |
| 摇摇欲坠 | yáo yáo yù zhuì | tottering |
| 摇篮曲 | yáo lán qǔ | lullaby |
| 摇动 | yáo dòng | to shake |
| 摇身一变 | yáo shēn yī biàn | to change shape in a single shake |
摇 appears in 67 compound words: 63 as the first character, 19 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 摇 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (14)
(idiom) to sway from side to side; unsteady; (idiom) indecisive; hesitant
to suddenly change into a different appearance or identity; to assume a different persona or disguise
(idiom) to sway from side to side; unsteady; (idiom) indecisive; hesitant
Showing 12 of 14 idioms containing 摇.
Example Sentences
风吹来，树枝轻轻摇晃，发出沙沙的声音。
Fēng chuī lái, shùzhī qīngqīng yáohuàng, fāchū shāshā de shēngyīn.
The wind blew, and the branches swayed gently, making rustling sounds.
...等于台美 ART 失效,关税法源转换未动摇协议基础
. . . děng yú tái měi A R T shī xiào , guān shuì fǎ yuán zhuǎn huàn wèi dòng yáo xié yì jī chǔ
... It is equivalent to the invalidation of the Taiwan-US ART, and the conversion of tariff legal sources has not shaken the foundation of the agreement
53岁女星离婚“消失20年”摇身东京包租婆“拥3间房”
5 3 suì nǚ xīng lí hūn xiāo shī 2 0 nián yáo shēn dōng jīng bāo zū pó yōng 3 jiān fáng
The 53-year-old actress divorced and "disappeared for 20 years" and turned into a Tokyo charter woman "with 3 rooms"
纽约曼哈顿最古老教堂 圣保罗礼拜堂历劫不摇
niǔ yuē 曼 hā dùn zuì gǔ lǎo jiào táng shèng bǎo luó lǐ bài táng lì jié bù yáo
St. Paul's Chapel, the oldest church in Manhattan, New York, has not been shaken by the disaster
“庆余年”男星“状告生父”历史被挖 摇身金牌讲师
qìng yú nián nán xīng zhuàng gào shēng fù lì shǐ bèi wā yáo shēn jīn pái jiǎng shī
"Qing Yu Nian" male star "sued his biological father" for "history was dug up and turned into a gold medal lecturer."
...装部队总参谋长:敌人试图以“战略消耗”动摇体制、打击民众士气
. . . zhuāng bù duì zǒng cān móu cháng dí rén shì tú yǐ zhàn lüè xiāo hào dòng yáo tǐ zhì dǎ jī mín zhòng shì qì
Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces: The enemy is attempting to undermine the system and demoralize the populace through "strategic attrition."
建筑物在地震中摇晃。
Jiànzhùwù zài dìzhèn zhōng yáohuàng.
The buildings shook in the earthquake.
融合爵士是摇滚乐与爵士乐的融合。
Rónghé juéshì shì yáogǔnyuè yǔ juéshìyuè de rónghé.
Jazz fusion is a combination of rock and jazz.
我在一支迷幻摇滚乐团里弹吉他。
Wǒ zài yī zhī míhuàn yáogǔnyuè tuán lǐ tán jítā.
I play guitar in a psychedelic rock band.
新生的长颈鹿摇晃着腿跌跌撞撞地走。
Xīnshēng de chángjǐnglù yáohuàng zhe tuǐ diēdiezhuàngzhuàng de zǒu.
The newborn giraffe stumbled around on rickety legs.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
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What characters sound the same as 摇 (yáo)?
Is 摇 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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