How to Write 锁 (suǒ) — Meaning “Lock / To lock”

Imagine a metal lock (钅) that you put on a door at a place (所). The right side 所 sounds like "so" in English, so you can think: "So you lock it with metal."

The left radical 钅 should be narrow and takes up about one third of the character width. A common mistake is making the left side too wide or writing the right side 所 with the strokes out of order—remember to write the horizontal top stroke first, then the left-falling stroke.

锁 means lock, while 钰 (yù) means precious jade and 钱 (qián) means money. Visually, 锁 has the complex right side 所, 钰 has the simple right side 玉 (jade), and 钱 has the right side 戋 (small). All share the metal radical but have very different meanings.

锁 is commonly used for physical actions like 锁门 (lock the door) and 开锁 (unlock). It also appears in metaphorical expressions like 封锁 (to block or seal off), and in Chinese culture, couples sometimes put padlocks on bridges as a symbol of love.

Common words containing 锁 include: 锁门 (suǒ mén) — To lock the door; 开锁 (kāi suǒ) — to unlock; 锁头 (suǒ tou) — Lock / Padlock.