表 (biǎo): exterior surface, family relationship via females, to show (one's opinion)
表 (biǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “exterior surface.” Classified as HSK Level 2 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 毛 (structural) and 衣 (structural). It ranks #177 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 表 fur 毛 clothing 衣; a shawl or wrap. Its radical form 衤 (clothing) appears in many related characters such as 衣 (yī, clothing), 装 (zhuāng, dress, install), 初 (chū, beginning).
Definitions
- exterior surface
- family relationship via females
- to show (one's opinion)
Etymology & Origin
ideographicFur 毛 clothing 衣; a shawl or wrap
Decomposition: ⿱毛衣 (layout: top-bottom)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 表 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 表
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 表现verb | biǎo xiàn | to show | 4 |
| 表演verb | biǎo yǎn | play | 3 |
| 代表noun/verb | dài biǎo | representative | 5 |
| 表情noun | biǎo qíng | (facial) expression | 5 |
| 表示verb | biǎo shì | (of sb) to express | 4 |
| 表达verb | biǎo dá | to express | 5 |
| 表明verb | biǎo míng | to make clear | 5 |
| 发表verb | fā biǎo | to issue | 5 |
| 表面noun | biǎo miàn | surface | 5 |
| 手表noun | shǒu biǎo | wristwatch | 2 |
| 外表noun | wài biǎo | external | 6 |
| 表格noun | biǎo gé | form | 4 |
| 时间表noun | shí jiān biǎo | schedule | 4 |
| 表扬verb | biǎo yáng | to praise | 4 |
| 图表noun | tú biǎo | chart | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 表弟noun | biǎo dì | younger male cousin through a female relative |
| 表妹noun | biǎo mèi | younger female cousin through a female relative |
| 表哥noun | biǎo gē | older male cousin through a female relative |
| 表态verb | biǎo tài | to declare one's position |
| 列表verb | liè biǎo | to tabulate |
| 日程表noun | rì chéng biǎo | daily schedule |
| 表决verb | biǎo jué | to decide by vote |
| 申请表noun | shēn qǐng biǎo | application form |
| 怀表noun | huái biǎo | pocket watch |
| 表姐noun | biǎo jiě | older female cousin through a female relative |
| 表白verb | biǎo bái | to explain oneself |
| 表亲noun | biǎo qīn | cousin (via female line) |
| 仪表noun | yí biǎo | appearance |
| 地表noun | dì biǎo | the surface (of the earth) |
| 表皮noun | biǎo pí | epidermis |
表 appears in 105 compound words: 53 as the first character, 45 as the last, and 2 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 表 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (10)
outside appearance and inner reality differ (idiom); not what it seems; saying one thing but meaning sth different
focus solely on form or appearance without emphasis on content or effectiveness; ostentatiousness
model teacher of every age (idiom); eternal paragon; refers to Confucius (551-479 BC) 孔子
focus solely on form or appearance without emphasis on content or effectiveness; ostentatiousness
Example Sentences
他的表演非常精彩，赢得了观众的热烈掌声。
Tā de biǎoyǎn fēicháng jīngcǎi, yíngdé le guānzhòng de rèliè zhǎngshēng.
His performance was wonderful and won warm applause from the audience.
美贸易代表:关税裁决不影响中美贸易协议 也不影响特...
měi mào yì dài biǎo : guān shuì cái jué bù yǐng xiǎng zhōng měi mào yì xié yì yě bù yǐng xiǎng tè . . .
U.S. Trade Representative: The tariff ruling will not affect the Sino-US trade agreement nor will it affect the special...
(图表)欧洲三大股指2月20日全线上涨
( tú biǎo ) ōu zhōu sān dà gǔ zhǐ 2 yuè 2 0 rì quán xiàn shàng zhǎng
(Chart) The three major European stock indexes rose across the board on February 20
上海乐高乐园度假区首个春节表现亮眼,成亲子家庭出行..
shàng hǎi lè gāo lè yuán dù jiǎ qū shǒu gè chūn jié biǎo xiàn liàng yǎn , chéng qīn zǐ jiā tíng chū háng . .
Shanghai Legoland Resort's first Spring Festival performance is eye-catching, and parents and children travel as a family:
多国媒体:春晚人形机器人表演展现中国人工智能飞速发..
duō guó méi tī chūn wǎn rén xíng jī qì rén biǎo yǎn zhǎn xiàn zhōng guó rén gōng zhì néng fēi sù fā . .
Global Media: Spring Festival Gala's Humanoid Robot Performance Showcases China's Rapid AI Advancements
泽连斯基表示遭袭击越多越难达成协议
zé lián sī jī biǎo shì zāo xí jī yuè duō yuè nán dá chéng xié yì
Zelenskyy stated that the more attacks there are, the harder it becomes to reach an agreement.
为什么你要对你没做过的事表示抱歉？
Wèishénme nǐ yào duì nǐ méi zuò guo de shì biǎoshì bàoqiàn?
Why say sorry for something you haven't even done?
请问你们几位是美国贸易代表团的吗？
Qǐngwèn nǐmen jǐ wèi shì Měiguó màoyì dàibiǎotuán de ma?
Are some of you from the US trade delegation?
这个表格好像有点复杂，你可以帮我填吗？
Zhège biǎogé hǎoxiàng yǒudiǎn fùzá, nǐ kěyǐ bāng wǒ tián ma?
This form looks kind of complicated. Help me fill it out.
这个年级的法方代表是谁？
Zhège niánjí de fǎ fāng dàibiǎo shì shéi?
Who is the current representative from France?
Character Family
衤 Radical Family — Characters sharing the clothing radical
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 表 (biǎo) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 表 have?
What is the radical of 表?
What are the components of 表?
What are common words containing 表?
What characters sound the same as 表 (biǎo)?
Is 表 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 表 with real-time feedback
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