嘲弄 (cháo nòng) — to mock, to ridicule, to make fun of | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

嘲弄 means to mock or ridicule someone openly, with a sharper, more contemptuous edge than 调侃 (which is playful teasing). Stronger and more biting than 笑话 when used as a verb.

verb

to mockto ridiculeto make fun of

Examples

嘲弄。
Tā xǐ huan cháo nòng bié rén de quē diǎn.
He likes to mock others' shortcomings.
嘲弄。
Bú yào cháo nòng nà xiē bǐ nǐ ruò de rén.
Don't make fun of those who are weaker than you.
嘲弄，。
Tā jīng cháng cháo nòng tóng shì, suǒ yǐ dà jiā dōu bù xǐ huan tā.
He often mocks his colleagues, so nobody likes him.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

嘲 means mock and 弄 means tease, so together they describe making fun of someone.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

口朝嘲

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

朝

朝cháo嘲cháo

Same sound today

嘲 pairs 口, the mouth, with 朝 as a sound part. The mouth part relates to the meaning.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

玉玉yùjade
廾廾gǒnghands

The form 弄 combines 玉 (jade) with 廾 (hands), showing hands touching or handling jade.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Conflict & Agreement

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