How to Write 扯 (chě) — Meaning “to pull; to tear; to chat”

Imagine using your hand (扌) to pull a cloth and shouting "stop!" (止) because it is about to tear. The sound "chě" also reminds me of "chew," which involves tearing food with teeth. This visual links the hand action and the command "stop" together.

Start with the left radical 扌: horizontal, vertical hook, then lift. Then write the right side 止: vertical stroke first, followed by top horizontal, middle vertical, and bottom horizontal. Be careful not to add an extra dot – 止 has exactly four strokes, and the whole character has seven strokes total.

Visually, 扑 (pū) has the hand radical on the left and 卜 (divination) on the right, which looks like a vertical line with a dot. In contrast, 扯's right side is 止 (stop) which has four strokes: two verticals and two horizontals. Meaningwise, 扑 means to pounce or pat, while 扯 means to pull, tear, or chat – much broader actions.

扯 appears in common spoken expressions: 拉扯 means to drag or to raise a child, 扯平 means to call it quits or be even, and 闲扯 means idle chat or nonsense talk. It is informal and frequent in daily conversation, but not used in formal writing or HSK vocabulary.

Common words containing 扯 include: 拉扯 (lā chě) — To pull and push / To drag / To bring up (children); 扯平 (chě píng) — to be even; to call it quits; 闲扯 (xián chě) — to chat / to talk nonsense.