摸
2 readings · tap one to hear it
to feel with the hand; to touch; to stroke; to grope; to steal; to abstract
Formation & memory
Break the character into parts you already know.
How to remember it
grope · Heisig RSH #1845
fingers + graveyard
Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.
Words with 摸
The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 摸着石头过河 | to wade across the river, feeling for footholds as one goes (idiom); to advance cautiously… | |
| 两眼一摸黑 | (of sb in an unfamiliar situation) helpless and disoriented | |
| 摸不着头脑 | to be unable to make any sense of the matter; to be at a loss | |
| 不摸头 | not acquainted with the situation; not up on things | |
| 摸不着边 | can't make head or tail of | |
| 合眼摸象 | to touch an elephant with closed eyes (idiom); to proceed blindly | |
| 丈二和尚，摸不着头脑 | lit. like a three-meter high monk, you can't rub his head (idiom); fig. at a total loss | |
| 摸不着 | can't touch; can't reach; (fig.) unable to get a grasp of | |
| 丈二金刚摸不着头脑 | see 丈二和尚，摸不著頭腦|丈二和尚，摸不着头脑[zhang4 er4 he2 shang5 , mo1 bu5 zhao2 tou2 nao3] | |
| 混水摸鱼 | variant of 渾水摸魚|浑水摸鱼[hun2 shui3 mo1 yu2] | |
| 起早摸黑 | see 起早貪黑|起早贪黑[qi3 zao3 tan1 hei1] | |
| 摸得着 | to be able to touch; tangible | |
| 小偷小摸 | to engage in petty theft | |
| 学摸 | variant of 踅摸[xue2 mo5] | |
| 自摸 | (mahjong) to self-draw the winning tile; (slang) to play with oneself; to masturbate | |
| 摸黑 | to grope about in the dark | |
| 摸鱼 | to catch fish; (fig.) to loaf on the job; to be slack; to take it easy | |
| 摸清 | to suss out; to figure out; to ascertain | |
| 摸八圈 | to play mahjong | |
| 浑水摸鱼 | to fish in troubled water (idiom); to take advantage of a crisis for personal gain |
Sound family
Characters sharing the sound component 莫 — compare how they read.
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 莫 sound part | cannot; do not; is not; negative | |
| 模 | model, pattern, standard; to copy, to imitate | |
| 幕 | curtain, screen, tent; measure word for plays and shows | |
| 膜 | membrane, film; to kneel and worship | |
| 墓 | grave, tomb | |
| 漠 | desert; aloof, cool, indifferent | |
| 慕 | to admire, to desire, to long for | |
| 暮 | dusk, evening, sunset; ending | |
| 募 | to levy, to raise; to recruit; to summon | |
| 蟆 | frog, toad | |
| 摹 | to trace; to imitate, to copy; pattern | |
| 谟 | to scheme, to plan; to practice | |
| 馍 | bread | |
| 寞 | silent, still; lonely, solitary | |
| 蓦 | suddenly, quickly, abruptly | |
| 糢 | rice snacks | |
| 镆 | sword | |
| 嫫 | Huangdi's ugly concubine; ugly woman, nurse | |
| 瘼 | sickness; distress |