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高超 (gāo chāo) — excellent, superb, outstanding

Definition

高超 praises a person's skill or technique as masterful (书法、医术、武艺). It is stronger and more skill-focused than 优秀 ('excellent' as a general compliment).

adjective
excellentsuperboutstanding

Examples

  • 高超。
    Tā de shū fǎ jì yì fēi cháng gāo chāo.
    His calligraphy skills are superb.
  • 高超。
    Zhè wèi chú shī de shǒu yì què shí gāo chāo.
    This chef's skill is truly superb.
  • 高超。
    Tā de biǎo yǎn gāo chāo jí le.
    His performance is extremely superb.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

高gāohigh
超chāosurpass

「高」 gives high and 「超」 gives surpassing, together meaning reaching high and surpassing the ordinary.

Characters in this word

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

高 was drawn as a tall building.

Open 高 →

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
走走zǒurun
Sound part声符shēngfú
召
召zhào超chāo
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

超 pairs 走, meaning “run,” with 召, which gives the sound.

Open 超 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 6Good & Bad

Browse more HSK 6 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.