淘气 (táo qì) — naughty, mischievous | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Means 'naughty' about children or pets — often playful rather than badly behaved. 调皮 is a very close synonym; 乖巧 is the opposite (well-behaved and cute).

adjective

naughtymischievous

Examples

淘气，。
Dì di hěn táo qì, zǒng shì bǎ wán jù rēng dé dào chù dōu shì.
My little brother is very naughty; he always throws toys everywhere.
淘气。
Zhè zhī táo qì de xiǎo māo bǎ huā píng dǎ suì le.
This mischievous little cat broke the vase.
淘气，。
Lǎo shī shuō tā suī rán táo qì, dàn hěn cōng ming.
The teacher said that although he is naughty, he is very smart.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

淘táostir up

气qìtemper

淘 suggests stirring up, and 气 suggests temper, together describing mischievous behavior.

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.

氵匋淘

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

匋

匋táo淘táo

Same sound today

淘 is built from 氵, a water form, and 匋, which gives the sound táo.

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 氣; 气 is its simplified writing.

气米氣

Meaning part形符xíngfú

米米mǐrice

Sound part声符shēngfú

气

气qì氣qì

Same sound today

The traditional form 氣 pairs 米 (rice) with 气, which supplies the sound; the simplified 气 is a later abbreviation.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 6 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Personality & Traits

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