How to Write 拢 (lǒng) — Meaning “to gather; to bring together”

Imagine your hand (扌) reaching out to gather a bunch of wriggling dragon (龙) toys into one pile. The dragon shape on the right can be seen as a curved arm pulling items close, reinforcing the idea of bringing together.

Write the left 扌 first (horizontal, vertical hook, lift), then the right 龙 (horizontal, left-falling, vertical hook, left-falling, dot). Be careful not to make the right side too tall—the 龙 part should align vertically with the hand radical. A common mistake is forgetting the dot above the 龙's second horizontal stroke.

拢 means "to gather" and uses the hand radical with 龙 for sound, while 托 (tuō) means "to hold in the palm" or "to entrust" and combines 扌 with 乇 (zhé or tuō). Visually, 拢 has a more complex right side (龙) with extra strokes, whereas 托 is simpler. Their meanings are entirely different—拢 is about pulling together, 托 about supporting or delegating.

拢 appears in common words like 合拢 (to close, as in closing a book or one's hands) and 聚拢 (people or things gathering). It is also used in 拢共, meaning "altogether" when counting totals. Though not in HSK, you may see it in everyday descriptions of closing doors, gathering crowds, or summarizing amounts.

Common words containing 拢 include: 合拢 (hé lǒng) — To close or shut; 聚拢 (jù lǒng) — to gather together; to collect; 拢共 (lǒng gòng) — altogether; in total.