答 dá, dā — to answer, to reply; an answer; (dā) to respond to, to agree (in 答应)

dá dā

2 readings — the first is the most common.

to answer, to reply; an answer; (dā) to respond to, to agree (in 答应)

12 strokesRadical 竹Frequency #517

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Pinyin

dá (second tone, rising)most common
dā (first tone, high and level)

to answer, to reply; an answer; (dā) to respond to, to agree (in 答应)

Character breakdown

Ideographic description

⿱⺮合The sequence reads left to right and describes how the parts are arranged.

⺮meaning partno entry yetBamboo. The word was first written 荅 with the grass radical; the bamboo form took over, and is usually explained by the slips on which a reply was written.
合sound partno entry yet合 hé for the sound; its own meaning, "to match, to fit together", suits an answer that fits its question.

Mnemonic

Bamboo ⺮ over 合 "to fit together": an answer is what fits the question, and it was written back on a bamboo slip. Say dá for the answer itself — 回答, 答案, 答对了 — and dā in the fixed pair 答应, to promise or to agree to do something.

A memory aid written by HSK Guide editors. It is not an etymology and does not describe the historical origin of the character.