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作弄 (zuò nòng) — to tease, to make a fool of

Definition

作弄 (zuōnòng) means to tease or make a fool of someone, usually playfully or as a prank. The stress is on the victim looking foolish, not on humor like 开玩笑.

verb
to teaseto make a fool of

Examples

  • 作弄。
    Tā xǐ huan zuò nòng bié rén.
    He likes to tease others.
  • 作弄，。
    Bié zuò nòng tā le, tā yǐ jīng hěn nán guò le.
    Don't make a fool of him; he's already very sad.
  • 作弄。
    Tā men jīng cháng zuò nòng xīn lái de tóng shì.
    They often tease the new colleague.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

作zuòdo
弄nònghandle

作 and 弄 both mean to do or handle, so 作弄 suggests playfully treating 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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
乍
乍zhà作zuò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left side 亻 comes from 人, meaning 'person', and the right side 乍 gives the sound.

Open 作 →

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

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

Open 弄 →
Appears in
Conflict & Agreement

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