How to Write 嚯 (huò) — Meaning “Wow / Gosh (interjection of surprise)”

Picture a person opening their mouth (口) wide in astonishment and shouting "Ho!" (sounds like huò). The right part 霍 can be broken into 雨 (rain) and 隹 (bird) — imagine a bird suddenly flying out in the rain, making you gasp "嚯!"

Start with the small 口 on the left, keeping it high and compact. The right side 霍 is tall and busy: write 雨 (8 strokes) first, then 隹 (9 strokes) below, making sure the vertical strokes align. A common mistake is making the 口 too big or misaligning the bottom of 隹 with the 口.

嚯 (huò) is a strong exclamation of surprise, like "Wow!" 嚄 (huò or huō) can also express surprise but often carries a tone of doubt or hesitation, like "Huh?" 嚅 (rú) means to mutter or whisper softly (as in 嚅嗫) and has the phonetic component 需, so it sounds very different and has no sense of surprise.

嚯 is an informal interjection used mainly in writing or speech to show sudden surprise, admiration, or shock — similar to "Whoa!" or "Gosh!" in English. It is common in comics, online chatting, and casual conversation, but rarely appears in formal texts. The character itself is not part of standard HSK vocabulary.

Common words containing 嚯 include: 嚯 (huò) — Wow / Gosh (interjection of surprise).