TongTong
Sign in

敲响 (qiāo xiǎng) — to strike and make sound; to ring (a bell, gong, alarm, etc.)

Definition

Literary verb meaning 'to strike and make ring' — usually a bell or alarm (警钟, 钟声). Use instead of plain 响 to stress the deliberate act of sounding it.

verb
to strike and make soundto ring (a bell, gong, alarm, etc.)

Examples

  • 敲响，。
    Tā men qiāo xiǎng le jǐng zhōng, tí xǐng dà jiā zhù yì ān quán.
    They rang the alarm bell to remind everyone to pay attention to safety.
  • ，敲响。
    Xīn nián yí dào, zhōng lóu shàng de dà zhōng jiù bèi qiāo xiǎng le.
    As the New Year arrived, the big bell in the bell tower was rung.
  • 敲响，。
    Shèng lì de zhōng shēng yǐ jīng qiāo xiǎng, suǒ yǒu rén dōu huān hū qǐ lái.
    The bell of victory has been rung, and everyone cheered.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

敲qiāostrike
响xiǎngsound

敲 means strike and 响 is sound, so it means strike until it rings.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
攴攴pūto hit lightly; to tap
Sound part声符shēngfú
高
高gāo敲qiāo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

敲 combines 高, which supplies the sound, with 攴, meaning to hit lightly or tap.

Open 敲 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 響; 响 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
音音yīnsound
Sound part声符shēngfú
鄉
鄉xiāng響xiǎng
Same sound today

The traditional form 響 pairs 音, meaning sound, with 鄉 to give its pronunciation. The simplified 响 is a later shorthand, so its visible parts are not the historical parts.

Open 响 →
Appears in
Senses

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.