召

supplies the sound in most of its characters (zhāo · Character component

supplies the sound in most of its characters (zhāo, shào, chāo, tiáo, diāo), with an underlying sense of calling or summoning someone to come

召 is written as 刀 over 口: a mouth below with a shape above it that in the oldest forms looks like a hand holding a ladle or spoon, so many read the graph as someone calling guests over and pouring them a drink; others take the top simply as 刀 'knife'. Either way the 口 at the bottom is the mouth doing the calling, which fits the meaning 'to summon'. In modern characters you can still see the little knife-shape sitting on the mouth, as in 招 (a hand 扌 beckoning) and 昭 (the sun 日 making things bright). In most of the rest — 超, 迢, 貂, 髫 — 召 is there for its sound rather than its meaning.

召 at a glance

Meaning

supplies the sound in most of its characters (zhāo

Strokes

5

Characters

20

Role

Contributes sound

Characters with 召 (18 of 20)

Frequently asked questions