动

dòng

Pinyin
dòng
Pinyin (Plain)
dong
Tone
4
Strokes
6
Radical
力
Readings
dòngdongTone: 4(of sth) to move; to set in movement; to displace; to touch; to make use of; to stir (emotions); to alter; abbr. for 動詞|动词[dong4 ci2], verbOrder: 0Primary
Stroke Order Code
Speed
Stroke Order Data
["M 242 646 Q 202 639 231 620 Q 279 593 342 610 Q 403 623 466 637 Q 494 644 499 648 Q 509 657 504 667 Q 495 680 462 687 Q 428 694 394 679 Q 363 669 327 659 Q 288 650 242 646 Z", "M 343 449 Q 401 461 475 470 Q 493 471 493 480 Q 494 493 476 503 Q 448 516 425 510 Q 187 461 110 456 Q 97 455 93 447 Q 90 435 105 424 Q 147 396 189 408 Q 240 424 283 435 L 343 449 Z", "M 439 288 Q 352 267 260 241 Q 253 240 252 241 Q 249 244 255 252 Q 325 384 356 420 Q 368 433 358 442 Q 352 446 343 449 C 316 462 276 464 283 435 Q 284 434 285 429 Q 298 386 232 280 Q 213 249 172 218 Q 147 205 148 195 Q 149 179 160 161 Q 172 143 185 140 Q 192 139 202 144 Q 251 189 446 270 Q 446 271 448 271 C 476 283 468 295 439 288 Z", "M 448 271 Q 473 225 485 219 Q 494 218 501 225 Q 510 235 511 261 Q 514 283 489 313 Q 461 338 429 363 Q 419 370 413 370 Q 407 369 405 359 Q 405 353 439 288 L 448 271 Z", "M 688 471 Q 740 487 794 495 Q 809 496 812 489 Q 819 474 816 432 Q 804 281 775 200 Q 760 151 743 134 Q 731 121 705 129 Q 666 141 632 153 Q 608 160 625 138 Q 674 86 702 46 Q 712 24 735 30 Q 754 33 777 58 Q 844 127 872 389 Q 878 447 900 481 Q 916 503 908 513 Q 892 532 856 547 Q 831 560 804 547 Q 758 525 696 507 L 634 492 Q 564 477 522 475 Q 503 476 503 466 Q 502 456 524 444 Q 551 428 574 437 Q 598 446 625 453 L 688 471 Z", "M 625 453 Q 580 273 489 145 Q 462 102 433 61 Q 427 54 425 48 Q 421 35 433 37 Q 469 43 562 170 Q 581 201 601 235 Q 646 323 688 471 L 696 507 Q 714 654 734 713 Q 734 719 737 724 Q 747 740 741 755 Q 723 774 689 792 Q 668 805 654 800 Q 641 793 647 777 Q 665 752 661 681 Q 658 663 657 641 Q 648 563 634 492 L 625 453 Z"]
Meaning
“动” most basically means “to move” or “to change position,” and by extension “to start doing something” or “to get something going.” It is also used for “to touch/affect (emotionally)” and in phrases about causing change, activity, or disturbance.
Metadata
Locale: en
Cached At: 3/24/2026, 7:19:45 PM

Usage

The character 动 (simplified; 動 in traditional) basically means “to move” or “to stir” and appears very often in everyday vocabulary. As a verb, it can mean to move something physically (别动 “don’t move”), to start moving or operate (发动 “to start; to launch”), or to touch/affect emotionally (感动 “to move emotionally”). It also appears in expressions about activity or change, such as 活动 “activity,” 运动 “exercise; sports; movement,” and 行动 “to take action.” In speech, telling someone not to do something often uses 动 with 不要 or 别, e.g., 别乱动 “don’t mess with things / don’t move around randomly.” Learners also see 动 in more abstract or grammatical patterns. A very common one is the potential complement construction V + 得/不 + 动, meaning “able/unable to move/do,” for example: 拿得动 “able to lift (it),” 拿不动 “too heavy to lift.” It’s used in similar ways with other verbs to suggest “can or can’t manage to move/do something” due to weight, effort, or energy. Overall, beginners and intermediate learners mainly meet 动 in high-frequency words about physical movement, activities, emotional impact, and this potential-complement pattern.

Handwriting Notes

动 in handwriting is compact and slightly wider than it is tall, with a clear contrast between the left and right parts. On the left is the “力” component, which often appears somewhat simplified in quick writing: the top horizontal can be short, and the lower hook may curve more gently. On the right is the “云/重-like” part, which in practice is usually written with a flowing, connected feel rather than looking like separate stacked boxes; the middle area tends to compress, making the top and bottom strokes look closer together. Overall, the character often looks like a dense block with energy and forward “lean,” especially because the left component can tilt slightly. Handwritten forms vary in how open or closed the inner space on the right is, how straight or curved the strokes of 力 are, and how much the top and bottom horizontal strokes differ in length. In casual handwriting, people may connect strokes or round corners, giving the character a softer, less angular look than in printed fonts. These natural variations—along with differences in pen pressure, speed, and personal style—mean that AI handwriting recognition systems are typically trained on many examples of 动 to correctly identify it across a wide range of writing styles.

Description

“动” is a simplified Chinese character that means “to move,” “to act,” or “to change.” It is commonly used in words like 活动 (activity), 动物 (animal), and 感动 (to be moved emotionally). Its basic idea is about movement or causing something to happen.

Common Words

  • 动dong4(of sth) to move
  • 举动ju3 dong4act
  • 动词dong4 ci2verb
  • 劳动lao2 dong4work
  • 脉动mai4 dong4pulse

Example Sentences

我喜欢动。

wo3 xi3 huan5 dong4

I like (of sth) to move.

举动很常见。

ju3 dong4 hen3 chang2 jian4

举动 is very common.

我们在学习动词。

wo3 men5 zai4 xue2 xi2 dong4 ci2

We are learning verb.

这个劳动很重要。

zhe4 ge5 lao2 dong4 hen3 zhong4 yao4

This work is important.

请写一下“动”。

qing3 xie3 yi1 xia4 dong4

Please write '动'.

Try writing this character