(chǎo) — (verb) to quarrel; to argue; (verb) to make noise; to disturb; (adjective) noisy; loud

Definition

吵 covers both senses: 'noisy' (adj) and 'to make noise / to quarrel' (verb). 响 focuses on a sound occurring ('ring, sound'); 闹 is louder and more chaotic noise, plus 'to cause trouble'.

verb
to quarrelto argueto make noiseto disturb
adjective
noisyloud

Examples

  • Nǐ men bú yào zài chǎo le.
    Don't quarrel anymore.
  • Qǐng bú yào chǎo, wǒ zài kàn shū.
    Please don't make noise, I'm reading.
  • Zhè ge fáng jiān hěn chǎo.
    This room is very noisy.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
Sound part声符shēngfú
shǎochǎo
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

吵 is built from 口, a mouth, plus 少, which supplies the sound. The mouth part matches meanings about noise and quarreling.

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