How to Write 刁 (diāo) — Meaning “Tricky; sly; artful”

Imagine a sly fox with a bent tail that forms the hook shape of 刁. The hook represents the tricky, sneaky nature of the fox, helping you link the shape to the meaning "cunning" or "artful."

The second stroke is a vertical hook that curves left at the bottom, but there is no extra left-falling stroke like in 刀. A common mistake is adding a 撇 (slash) after the hook, which turns it into the unrelated character 刀 (knife).

刁 is a standalone character with two strokes: a horizontal line and a vertical hook. In contrast, 刀 has a third stroke (a left-falling slash) that makes it look like a knife, and ⺈ is only a component (like in 角) that is never used alone. Visually, 刁 is more compact and hook-shaped.

刁 appears in negative words like 刁难 (to make things difficult), 刁钻 (cunning), and 刁蛮 (unreasonable and headstrong). It describes someone who is deliberately tricky or mean, and is often found in stories, dramas, or complaints about a person's difficult behavior.

Common words containing 刁 include: 刁难 (diāo nàn) — To make things difficult for someone; 刁钻 (diāo zuān) — Cunning; tricky; artful; 刁蛮 (diāo mán) — Unreasonable and headstrong; shrewish.