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勤快 (qín kuai) — diligent, hardworking

Definition

Spoken, everyday word for a person who is willing and active in doing chores and daily tasks. 勤奋 focuses more on study or work effort; 勤劳 is similar but more written.

adjective
diligenthardworking

Examples

  • 勤快。
    Tā cóng xiǎo jiù fēi cháng qín kuai.
    He has been very hardworking since he was young.
  • 勤快。
    qín kuai De rén zǒng néng zhǎo dào hǎo gōng zuò.
    A hardworking person can always find a good job.
  • 勤快，。
    Tā hěn qín kuai, zuò shì cóng bù tōu lǎn.
    She is very diligent and never slacks off when doing things.

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
快kuàiquick

勤 means diligent and 快 means quick, together describing someone who works hard and nimbly.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 勤 →

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
忄Written in full as心xīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
夬
夬guài快kuài
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

快 pairs the left part 忄 (full form 心, the heart) with the right part 夬, which gives the sound.

Open 快 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Personality & Traits

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