How to Write 拓 (tà/tuò) — Meaning “To expand / to develop”

Imagine using your hands (扌) to push a large stone (石) out of the way to open up a new space. This visual of 'expanding' your territory by moving a stone helps link the shape to the meaning. The action feels like 'pioneering' or 'developing' a new area.

Write the left radical 扌 first with three strokes: horizontal, vertical hook, then lift. Then add the right part 石 with five strokes: horizontal, left-falling, vertical, horizontal fold, and final horizontal. A common mistake is making the hand radical too short or too wide; keep it narrow and even, with the stone portion slightly taller to balance the character.

拓 has the stone 石 on the right, while 托 (tuō) has the component 七 (qī) meaning 'seven' — 托 means 'to hold in the palm' or 'to entrust'. The character 㧜 is very rare and not used in modern Chinese; it looks like 扌 plus 乐, but you only need to remember that 拓 always has a stone on the right side.

拓 is often used in formal or written contexts, especially in the word 开拓 (kāi tuò) meaning 'to pioneer' or 'to expand', like in 开拓市场 (expand a market). It also appears in 拓展 (tuò zhǎn) for 'extend' and in 拓本 (tà běn) meaning a 'rubbing' from a stone inscription — here it is pronounced tà, with the rubbing action directly linked to the hand-on-stone origin.

Common words containing 拓 include: 开拓 (kāi tuò) — to expand; to develop; to pioneer; 拓展 (tuò zhǎn) — To expand / to extend; 拓本 (tà běn) — a rubbing; a copy made by rubbing.