淘 táo to dredge
to dredge; to sieve; to wash; naughty; mischievous
How to remember 淘: 氵 water + 匋 pottery = to dredge. Knee-deep in canal water, the volunteers find old pottery every time they start to dredge the muddy bottom.
Component breakdown
淘 = 氵 water + 匋 pottery
- 氵 water
- 匋 pottery
Knee-deep in canal water, the volunteers find old pottery every time they start to dredge the muddy bottom.
How it is used
- To rinse/pan/wash out - 淘米 (táo mǐ) to rinse rice, 淘金 (táojīn) to pan for gold.
- 淘汰 (táotài) = to eliminate/weed out (the 'wash away' sense applied to competition).
- 淘气 (táoqì) = naughty/mischievous (of a child).
- 淘 in e-commerce (淘宝 Taobao) evokes 'hunting/digging for finds' - 淘到好东西 to snag a good bargain.