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掃 — pronunciations, definitions, and tags
HanziPinyinEnglishTags
掃sǎoto clean, to sweep, to wipe away; to weed out; to wipe outx, 11 strokes, radical 扌, rank #45249, Very Hard
sǎo(sao3)sao T3
  1. 1to clean, to sweep, to wipe away; to weed out; to wipe out
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March 24, 2026

掃sǎo(sao3)

The character 掃 (sǎo) primarily means 'to sweep' or 'to clean' and is commonly used in contexts involving cleaning spaces or removing dirt. It can also imply 'to wipe away' or 'to weed out' in a broader sense, such as eliminating unwanted elements or ideas.

Strokes11Radical扌Frequency#45249DifficultyVery Hard
Cultural note

Cleaning, especially sweeping, has a cultural significance in Chinese traditions, often associated with the idea of sweeping away bad luck and making room for good fortune, especially during the Lunar New Year.

Memory tip

Imagine a person sweeping away dirt with a broom. The character 掃 has a hand (扌) on the left, representing the action of using your hand to sweep, and the right side (巳) can be visualized as the dirt being removed from a space, emphasizing the act of cleaning.

Meanings of 掃

sǎo(sao3)
1to clean, to sweep, to wipe away; to weed out; to wipe out
Exercise 1 of 2

By ear

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About 掃

掃Simplified
11Strokes
扌Radical
非语素字non-morpheme character (n-m.)Part of Speech
#—Frequency Rank

Podcast: 掃

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Podcast: 掃

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AI study notes for 掃

Quick Contrast

清 (qīng) - use 掃 (sǎo) for physical cleaning actions, while 清 (qīng) is more about clarity or purity.

Usage Notes

Learners often confuse 掃 with 清理 (qīnglǐ), which means to tidy up or organize, rather than just sweeping. It is used in both formal and informal contexts, so pay attention to collocations like 掃地 (sǎo dì - sweep the floor) and 掃除 (sǎochú - to clean up).

HSK Study Tips

Although 掃 is not explicitly listed in the HSK levels, it relates to HSK 2 vocabulary about daily activities, such as cleaning. Students should focus on practicing its use in sentences related to household chores.

Common Mistakes

Learners often forget to use the correct measure word when talking about the objects being cleaned. For example, saying '我掃一個地' (Wǒ sǎo yī gè dì) is incorrect; the correct phrase is '我掃地' (Wǒ sǎo dì) without the measure word.

AI-enhanced 2026-03-24

Pronunciation of 掃

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Etymology of 掃

Formation typeIdeographic 指事
六书 ClassificationIdeograph (指事字)~2% of characters
Explanation

Simplified form of 掃. Phonosemantic compound. 扌 represents the meaning and 帚 represents the sound.

Memory hint

To use 扌 a broom 帚; 帚 also provides the pronunciation

Learn more about Ideograph (指事字) characters
Exercise 1 of 1

Origin

What kind of character is 掃?

Decomposition of 掃

IDS Structure⿰扌帚
掃Full character
=
扌shou3
left
帚zhou3
right
Exercise 1 of 2

Parts

Which of these is part of 掃?

How to say to clean, to sweep, to wipe away; to weed out; to wipe out in Chinese

“to clean, to sweep, to wipe away; to weed out; to wipe out” in Chinese is掃sǎo

The character 掃 (sǎo) primarily means 'to sweep' or 'to clean' and is commonly used in contexts involving cleaning spaces or removing dirt. It can also imply 'to wipe away' or 'to weed out' in a broader sense, such as eliminating unwanted elements or ideas.

When to use 掃

Learners often confuse 掃 with 清理 (qīnglǐ), which means to tidy up or organize, rather than just sweeping. It is used in both formal and informal contexts, so pay attention to collocations like 掃地 (sǎo dì - sweep the floor) and 掃除 (sǎochú - to clean up).

掃 or something close to it

清 (qīng) - use 掃 (sǎo) for physical cleaning actions, while 清 (qīng) is more about clarity or purity.

What learners get wrong

Learners often forget to use the correct measure word when talking about the objects being cleaned. For example, saying '我掃一個地' (Wǒ sǎo yī gè dì) is incorrect; the correct phrase is '我掃地' (Wǒ sǎo dì) without the measure word.

Write 掃

掃

Practice writing 掃 stroke by stroke. Watch the animation to learn the stroke order, then try writing it yourself.

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Word Family of 掃

Words containing this character20
扫sǎoto sweep掃
扫描sǎomiáoto scan掃描
打扫dǎsǎoto clean打掃
扫地to sweep the floor掃地
清扫to tidy up清掃
扫兴sǎoxìngto feel disappointed掃興
横扫to sweep away橫掃
扫荡to root out掃蕩
扫帚broom掃帚
扫除sǎochúto sweep掃除
扫射to strafe掃射
扫描仪scanner (device)掃描儀
扫墓sǎomùthe Qingming festival掃墓
扫把broom掃把
扫盲to wipe out illiteracy掃盲
扫视to run one's eyes over掃視
扫黄campaign against pornography掃黃
扫描器scanner掃描器
一扫而光to clear off一掃而光
扫雷minesweeper (computer game)掃雷
Exercise 1 of 4

Characters with 掃

What does 扫 mean?

Frequently asked questions about 掃

掃 specifically refers to the action of sweeping or cleaning, while 清理 means to tidy up or organize.

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