How to Write 撬 (qiào) — Meaning “to pry; to lever”

Picture a hand (扌) holding a metal bar to lift (翘) a heavy lid off a jar. Imagine the bar bending upward like the top part of 翘, and the hand gripping the bottom to create leverage. This visual helps connect the hand and lifting action to prying.

The hand radical 扌 on the left should be narrow and tall, while the right side 翘 has a tricky diagonal hook (斜钩) in its upper part. A common mistake is making the right side too wide — keep the whole character balanced with the hand taking about one-third of the width.

撬 (qiào) means to pry or lever, and its right side contains 翘 with the feather radical 羽 at the bottom. 搋 (chuāi) means to hide in clothes or knead, and its right side is different (it includes 耑). 搌 (zhǎn) means to wipe or shift, and its right side has 展. So the meaning and the bottom part of the right side are key visual differences.

You often see 撬 in phrases like 撬开 (to pry open) for a lid or door, and 撬锁 (to pick or pry open a lock). It is also used metaphorically in 撬动 (to leverage), for example to move a difficult situation or start a project. Although not in HSK, it is a common verb for physical actions with a tool.

Common words containing 撬 include: 撬开 (qiào kāi) — to pry open; 撬锁 (qiào suǒ) — to pick a lock; to pry open a lock; 撬动 (qiào dòng) — to pry; to leverage.