拆

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to tear open; to tear down; to tear apart; to open

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HSK 3.0: Level 5
Old HSK: Level 5
Strokes: 8
Radical: 手 +5
Structure: Left–right 左右
Traditional: 拆
Common rank: #1,816
Unicode: U+62C6

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

How 拆 is formed

Phono-semantic compound (形声字)

扌 meaning “hand” + 斥 sound ( chì )

Components 扌斥

How to remember it

take apart · Heisig RSH #2193

fingers + 斥 reprimand

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

Words with 拆

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
托里拆利	Tuō lǐ chāi lì	Evangelista Torricelli (1608-1647), Italian physicist, colleague of Galileo
拆东补西	chāi dōng bǔ xī	lit. pull down the east wall to repair the west (idiom); fig. temporary expedient; Rob Pet…
过河拆桥	guò hé chāi qiáo	(lit.) to destroy the bridge after crossing the river (idiom); (fig.) to abandon one's ben…
同业拆借	tóng yè chāi jiè	call loan; short-term loan within banking
拆东墙补西墙	chāi dōng qiáng bǔ xī qiáng	(lit.) to tear down the east wall to repair the west wall (saying); (fig.) to rob Peter to…
见招拆招	jiàn zhāo chāi zhāo	to counter every move; to be full of tricks
清拆户	qīng chāi hù	demolition of homes; to destroy homes (for new building projects)
宁拆十座庙，不毁一桩婚	nìng chāi shí zuò miào , bù huǐ yī zhuāng hūn	rather destroy ten temples than a single marriage (idiom)
拆家	chāi jiā	(slang) low-level drug dealer; (slang) (of a pet) to wreck the house (scattering trash, ch…
拆放款	chāi fàng kuǎn	funds on call; invested sum that can be cashed
拆机	chāi jī	to dismantle a machine; to terminate a telephone service
分拆	fèn chāi	to separate off; to hive off; a demerger
拆分	chāi fēn	to break up into parts
拆下	chāi xià	to dismantle; to take apart
拆开	chāi kāi	to dismantle; to disassemble; to open up (sth sealed); to unpick
拆线	chāi xiàn	to remove stitches (from a wound)
拆台	chāi tái	(theater) to dismantle the stage; (fig.) to pull the rug out from under sb's feet; to unde…
拆字	chāi zì	fortune telling by unpicking Chinese characters
拆用	chāi yòng	to tear down and reuse; to cannibalize
清拆	qīng chāi	demolition (of buildings for new project)

Sound family

Characters sharing the sound component 斥 — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
斥 sound part	chì	to scold, to upbraid; to accuse, to blame; to reproach
坼	chè	to crack, to open, to split, to tear