淘 (táo) - To wash or rinse & to clean out impurities

淘Tone 2

táo ｜ 11 strokes ｜ radical:

檀婷

淘 · táo

To wash or rinse;

to clean out impurities;

to sift through;

to search carefully;

to be naughty or mischievous.

To wash or rinseto clean out impuritiesto sift through

Usage highlights

Wash riceNaughtyPan for goldEliminateRinseSift through

Synonyms

  • 洗— to wash
  • 拣— to select, to pick
  • 顽皮— naughty, mischievous

Antonyms

  • 乖— well-behaved, obedient
  • 留— to keep, to retain

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • I need to wash the rice (淘米).
  • The child is very naughty (这孩子很淘气).
  • They are panning for gold (他们正在淘金).
  • We need to eliminate the outdated products (我们需要淘汰过时产品).

Collocations

  • Wash rice(淘米)
  • Naughty(淘气)
  • Pan for gold(淘金)
  • Eliminate(淘汰)
  • Rinse(淘洗)
  • Sift through(淘选)

Idioms

  • Naughty and troublesome(淘气捣蛋)
  • Great waves wash away sand — the strong survive(Big浪淘沙)
  • Wash sand to extract gold — search for the valuable(淘沙取金)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Originally depicted washing rice to remove husks and impurities, extending to purification and selection processes.
  • In modern usage, commonly describes mischievous but endearing behavior in children (淘气).
  • Metaphorically used in business contexts for eliminating inferior products or competitors (淘汰).

FAQ