打电话 (dǎdiànhuà) · to make a phone call
打电话 (dǎdiànhuà) means “to make a phone call”. It is written with 3 characters: 打 (to play (ball)) + 电 (electricity) + 话 (words). It is an HSK 1 word in the current exam syllabus (2025).
How 打电话 is built
The characters
打 dǎ · to play (ball)
What 打 is made of
- 扌shǒu — hand
- 二 — two strokes
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 亅 — hook
- 二 — two strokes
- 丁dīng — male adult
Origin hint: 扌 gives the meaning, 丁 gives the sound. (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
电 diàn · electricity
What 电 is made of
- 曰yuē — to speak
- 口kǒu — mouth
- 冂 — frame
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 口kǒu — mouth
- 乚 — hook stroke
Origin hint: Simplified form of 電; lightning 申 from a storm cloud 雨 (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
话 huà · words
What 话 is made of
- 讠yán — speech
- 舌shé — tongue
- 千qiān — thousand
- 丿 — falling stroke
- 十 — ten
- 口kǒu — mouth
- 冂 — frame
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 千qiān — thousand
Origin hint: A spoken 讠 tongue 舌; 舌 also provides the pronunciation (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
Example sentences
Questions about 打电话
What does 打电话 mean?
打电话 (dǎdiànhuà) means “to make a phone call”.
How do you pronounce 打电话?
打电话 is pronounced dǎdiànhuà.
Which HSK level is 打电话?
打电话 is in HSK 1 (exam 2025) and HSK 1 (2021) and Old HSK 1.
Related words
- 打车dǎchēto take a taxi
- 打开dǎkāito open
- 打球dǎqiúto play ball
- 打工dǎgōngto work part-time
- 打算dǎsuànto plan
- 打印dǎyìnto print
- 打破dǎpòto break
- 打听dǎtingto ask about
- 打败dǎbàito defeat
- 打雷dǎléito thunder
It is part of HSK 1 (2021) · Group 18: a short group with quick checks and spaced repeats.