描 (miáo): to depict, to trace (a drawing), to copy
描 (miáo) is a Chinese character meaning “to depict.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 扌 (semantic) and 苗 (phonetic). It ranks #1240 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 描 hand. Its radical form 扌 (hand) appears in many related characters such as 手 (shǒu, hand), 打 (dǎ, hit, make), 找 (zhǎo, to look for).
Definitions
- to depict
- to trace (a drawing)
- to copy
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 描 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 描
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 描述verb | miáo shù | to describe | 5 |
| 扫描verb | sǎo miáo | to scan | 6 |
| 描绘verb | miáo huì | to describe | 6 |
| 描写verb | miáo xiě | to describe | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 扫描仪noun | sǎo miáo yí | scanner (device) |
| 素描noun | sù miáo | sketch |
| 扫描器noun | sǎo miáo qì | scanner |
| 轻描淡写phrase | qīng miáo dàn xiě | (idiom) to treat sth as no big deal |
| 描画verb | miáo huà | to draw |
| 描图verb | miáo tú | to trace |
| 人物描写 | rén wù miáo xiě | portrayal |
| 越描越黑phrase | yuè miáo yuè hēi | lit. the more you touch things up, the darker they get |
| 回描 | huí miáo | flyback (of electron beam in cathode ray tube) |
| 白描noun | bái miáo | line drawing in traditional ink-and-brush style |
| 电脑断层扫描 | diàn nǎo duàn céng sǎo miáo | CAT scan |
| 描金 | miáo jīn | to outline in gold |
| 超声扫描 | chāo shēng sǎo miáo | ultrasonic scan |
| 描红verb | miáo hóng | to trace over red characters (as a method of learning to write) |
| 逐行扫描 | zhú háng sǎo miáo | line by line scanning |
描 appears in 24 compound words: 33 as the first character, 42 as the last, and 25 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 描 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (3)
(sciences) tomography; short for 電子計算機斷層掃描／电子计算机断层扫描 (“computed tomography (CT)”)
(sciences) tomography; short for 電子計算機斷層掃描／电子计算机断层扫描 (“computed tomography (CT)”)
Example Sentences
这篇文章生动地描绘了乡村的美丽景色。
Zhè piān wénzhāng shēngdòng de miáohuì le xiāngcūn de měilì jǐngsè.
This article vividly depicts the beautiful scenery of the countryside.
笔下风云:轻描淡写 敷衍了事
bǐ xià fēng yún : qīng miáo dàn xiě fū yǎn le shì
The Power of the Pen: A Casual, Half-Hearted Approach
【时事金扫描】将领被团灭 伊朗跪了 海峡开通
shí shì jīn sǎo miáo jiāng lǐng bèi tuán miè yī lǎng guì le hǎi xiá kāi tōng
[Current Affairs Spotlight] Iranian Commanders Wiped Out, Iran Bows to Pressure, Strait Reopens
...说 Z-A》美洛耶塔捕捉攻略:特殊调查扫描指南 - LiftingandZombi...
. . . shuō Z A měi Luò yē tǎ bǔ zhuō gōng lüè : tè shū diào chá sǎo miáo zhǐ nán L i f t i n g a n d Z o m b i . . .
...Say Z-A: Meloyetta Capture Guide: Special Investigation Scan Guide - LiftingandZombi...
...性渐冻症是什么病?对病情突发加重的非专业描述
. . . xìng jiān dòng zhèng shì shén má bìng ? duì bìng qíng tū fā jiā chóng de fēi zhuān yè miáo shù
...What is ALS? A layperson's description of a sudden worsening of symptoms
子宫回声不均匀什么意思?B超单上这个描述常见吗
zǐ gōng huí shēng bù jūn yún shén má yì sī ? chāo dān shàng zhè gè miáo shù cháng jiàn ma
What does uneven uterine echo mean? Is this description common on the B-ultrasound list?
汤姆，你能教玛丽用扫描仪吗？
Tāngmǔ, nǐ néng jiāo Mǎlì yòng sǎomiáoyí ma?
Tom, can you show Mary how to use the scanner?
次郎画了一幅富士山的素描。
Cì láng huà le yī fú Fùshì Shān de sùmiáo.
Jiro made a sketch of Mt. Fuji.
我不是诗人，无法用一行文字描绘它的美丽。
Wǒ bù shì shīrén, wúfǎ yòng yīxíng wénzì miáohuì tā de měilì.
I'm not a poet; I couldn't write a single line to depict its beauty.
他详细地描述了事故状况。
Tā xiángxì de miáoshù le shìgù zhuàngkuàng.
He described the incident in detail.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 描 (miáo) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 描 and 猫?
How many strokes does 描 have?
What is the radical of 描?
What are the components of 描?
What are common words containing 描?
What characters sound the same as 描 (miáo)?
Is 描 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 描 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.