How to Write 诉 (sù) — Meaning “To tell / To complain / To sue”

Imagine you are telling someone something important, and you use words (讠) to push away (斥) a problem. The sound "sù" is like "sue," so think of speaking up in court to sue someone. This connects the shape to the meaning of telling, complaining, or suing.

Start with the speech radical 讠: first write a dot, then a horizontal fold, and a short horizontal stroke. Then write the right part 斥: first a left-falling stroke, then a horizontal, another left-falling, and finally a dot. Make sure the left radical is narrow and the right part is slightly wider. A common mistake is making the dot on the far right too big or forgetting it.

诉 means to tell, complain, or sue, and uses the component 斥. In contrast, 讦 (jié) means to expose someone's secrets and uses 干, while 讧 (hòng) means to quarrel or be in conflict and uses 工. Visually, the right parts are different: 斥 vs. 干 vs. 工, and their meanings are distinct—诉 is about speech actions, 讦 is about revealing, and 讧 is about fighting.

诉 appears in everyday words like 告诉 (gàosu, to tell), 投诉 (tóusù, to complain or file a complaint), and 起诉 (qǐsù, to sue). In Chinese culture, using 投诉 is common in customer service contexts when you want to report a problem, while 起诉 is formal and used in legal settings. 诉 shows that the action is done through speaking or writing words.

Common words containing 诉 include: 告诉 (gào sù) — to tell; to inform; 投诉 (tóu sù) — to complain; to file a complaint; 起诉 (qǐ sù) — to sue; to bring a lawsuit.