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旷课 (kuàng kè) — to skip class, to play truant

Definition

To skip class as a student habit — emphasizes missing one's own scheduled class (often repeatedly). 刷 is a colloquial shortcut for the same idea; 缺席 is more formal and applies to any event, not just a student's class.

verb
to skip classto play truant

Examples

  • 旷课。
    Tā zuì jìn jīng cháng kuàng kè.
    He has been skipping class often recently.
  • 旷课？
    Nǐ wèi shén me yào kuàng kè qù wán yóu xì?
    Why did you skip class to play games?
  • 旷课。
    kuàng kè Sān cì huì bèi xué xiào jǐng gào.
    Skipping class three times will result in a school warning.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

旷kuàngbe absent from
课kèclass

旷, be absent from, and 课, class, together mean skipping class.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 曠; 旷 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun
Sound part声符shēngfú
廣
廣guǎng曠kuàng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 曠 pairs 日 (sun) with 廣 as a sound part; the simplified 旷 is a later shorthand, so its right side is not the historical 廣.

Open 旷 →

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 課; 课 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánto say
Sound part声符shēngfú
果
果guǒ課kè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 課 pairs 言 (to say) with 果 as a sound part; the simplified 课 is a shorthand and its right side is not a sound part.

Open 课 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6School & Education

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