How to Write 汰 (tài) — Meaning “To eliminate / to wash away”

Imagine you have a stain that is "too big" (太) to ignore, so you must wash it out with water (氵). The image of water flushing away something excessive helps you recall that 汰 means "to eliminate" or "to wash away."

Write the left radical 氵 as three quick dots in a narrow column. Then write the right part 太: first a horizontal stroke, then a vertical hook (not too long), and finally two dots — the left dot slightly higher than the right. A common mistake is making the vertical hook too straight or the dots too far apart, which changes the balance.

The right side of 汰 is 太 (tài), meaning "too much", while 㳄 has 欠 (qiàn, "yawn/missing") and means "saliva", and 氿 has 九 (jiǔ, "nine") and means "spring water". So visually check the lower part: 太 (a large cross and a dot), 欠 (a person bending), or 九 (a simple curve).

汰 appears in common words like 淘汰 (táo tài, "to eliminate, to knock out") used in competitions and the idiom 优胜劣汰 (yōu shèng liè tài, "survival of the fittest"). This idiom reflects natural selection and is often used in business or evolution discussions. The character is not in the HSK list, so it is more formal or technical than everyday vocabulary.

Common words containing 汰 include: 淘汰 (táo tài) — to eliminate; to knock out (in a competition); 优胜劣汰 (yōu shèng liè tài) — Survival of the fittest.; 汰换 (tài huàn) — To replace / to weed out.