TongTong
Sign in

逗人 (dòu rén) — amusing, funny (in a cute or endearing way)

Definition

Adjective describing behavior that makes people laugh in a cute, endearing way (a puppy waddling, a toddler stumbling) — lighter and warmer than 幽默 or 滑稽, which describe deliberate humor or comicality.

adjective
amusingfunny (in a cute or endearing way)

Examples

  • 逗人。
    Zhè ge xiǎo gǒu de dòng zuò zhēn dòu rén.
    The movements of this little dog are really amusing.
  • 逗人，。
    Tā shuō huà de yàng zi hěn dòu rén, dà jiā dōu xiào le.
    The way she talks is so endearing that everyone laughed.
  • 逗人。
    Xiǎo hái xué zǒu lù de yàng zi zuì dòu rén.
    The way a toddler learns to walk is the cutest.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

逗dòuamuse
人rénpeople

逗 (amuse) and 人 (people) give the sense of amusing people, so funny.

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
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu逗dòu
Same sound today

逗 pairs 辶, written in full as 辵, with 豆, which gives the sound.

Open 逗 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →
Appears in
Personality & Traits

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