勤劳 (qín láo) — hardworking, industrious, diligent | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

General word for 'hardworking / industrious', usually about a person's character or daily work ethic. 勤奋 emphasizes sustained, focused effort (especially in study); 勤快 leans toward being willing to help with housework and chores.

adjective

hardworkingindustriousdiligent

Examples

勤劳。
Tā shì yí wèi fēi cháng qín láo de gōng rén.
He is a very hardworking worker.
勤劳。
qín láo Shì chéng gōng de zhòng yào tiáo jiàn.
Hard work is an important condition for success.
勤劳。
Tā qín láo de xìng gé yíng dé le dà jiā de zūn zhòng.
Her hardworking character earned everyone's respect.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

勤qíndiligent

勤 (diligent) and 劳 (toil) together mean hardworking.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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 勞; 劳 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

𬡤

𬡤𬡤勞láo

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 勞 uses 力 for the meaning and 𬡤 for the sound; the simplified 劳 is a later shortened shape.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 6 HSK 2.0 Level 5 Personality & Traits

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