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滑头 (huá tóu) — (stative verb) sly, shifty, cunning; (noun) a sly person, a slippery character (colloquial)

Definition

A colloquial, mildly negative word for someone sly and untrustworthy. Compare 狡猾, which focuses on the deceitful actions or personality traits themselves; 滑头 labels the person and carries a stronger sense of being a slippery, evasive character.

adjective
(stative verb) slyshiftycunning
noun
a sly persona slippery character (colloquial)

Examples

  • 滑头，。
    Tā zhè ge rén hěn huá tóu, nǐ yào xiǎo xīn.
    He's a very slippery person — you need to be careful.
  • ，。
    Bié gēn wǒ shuǎ huá tóu, wǒ zhī dào nǐ zài piàn wǒ.
    Don't play tricks with me — I know you're lying.
  • 滑头，。
    Dà jiā dōu shuō tā shì lǎo huá tóu, méi rén yuàn yì xìn rèn tā.
    Everyone says he's an old fox; nobody trusts him.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

滑huáslippery
头tóuhead

The 滑 “slippery” and 头 “head” combine to suggest a slippery head, i.e. a sly person.

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
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
骨
骨gǔ滑huá
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

滑 pairs 水 (water) with 骨, which gives the sound.

Open 滑 →

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →
Appears in
Personality & Traits

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