巧 (qiǎo): opportunely, coincidentally, as it happens
巧 (qiǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “opportunely.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 工 (semantic) and 丂 (phonetic). It ranks #1214 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 巧 work. Its radical form 工 (work) appears in many related characters such as 工 (gōng, work), 左 (zuǒ, left), 差 (chā, difference).
Definitions
- opportunely
- coincidentally
- as it happens
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 巧 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 巧
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 巧克力noun | qiǎo kè lì | (loanword) chocolate | 4 |
| 技巧noun | jì qiǎo | skill | 6 |
| 巧妙adjective | qiǎo miào | ingenious | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 巧合 | qiǎo hé | coincidence |
| 碰巧 | pèng qiǎo | by chance |
| 凑巧 | còu qiǎo | fortuitously |
| 恰巧 | qià qiǎo | by chance |
| 正巧 | zhèng qiǎo | just by chance |
| 不巧 | bù qiǎo | too bad |
| 小巧 | xiǎo qiǎo | small and exquisite |
| 轻巧 | qīng qiǎo | dexterous |
| 精巧 | jīng qiǎo | elaborate |
| 灵巧 | líng qiǎo | deft |
| 刚巧 | gāng qiǎo | by chance |
| 熟能生巧 | shú néng shēng qiǎo | with familiarity you learn the trick (idiom) |
| 投机取巧 | tóu jī qǔ qiǎo | to gain advantage by any means, fair or foul |
| 乖巧 | guāi qiǎo | clever (child) |
| 弄巧成拙 | nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō | to overreach oneself |
巧 appears in 60 compound words: 37 as the first character, 47 as the last, and 17 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 巧 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (9)
sweet but insincere (usually flattering) speech; slick talk; dishonest rhetoric
with flourishing words and friendly countenance; with insincere courtesy
Example Sentences
了解巧字的来源，有助于理解中国文化。
le xiè qiǎo zì de lái yuán , yǒu zhù yú lǐ xiè zhōng guó wén huā .
Understanding the origin of the character "巧" helps to comprehend Chinese culture.
(米兰冬奥会)综合消息:谷爱凌U型场地技巧卫冕 美国摘赛会最后一金
( mǐ lán dōng ào huì ) zèng gě xiāo xī : gǔ ài líng U xíng chǎng dì jì qiǎo wèi 冕 měi guó zhāi sài huì zuì hòu yī jīn
(Milan Winter Olympics) Comprehensive news: Gu Ailing defended her U-shaped track skills and won the last gold medal of the United States
老妇创意善用厨余 巧手制艺术品
lǎo fù chuàng yì shàn yòng chú yú qiǎo shǒu zhì yì shù pǐn
The old woman creatively uses kitchen waste to make artworks by hand
杨巧双访闽听民意 推动策略发展旅游经济
yáng qiǎo shuāng fǎng 闽 tīng mín yì tuī dòng cè lüè fā zhǎn lǚ yóu jīng jì
Yang Qiaoshuang visited Fujian to listen to public opinion and promote the strategic development of the tourism economy
谷爱凌U型场地技巧决赛夺金 中国队包揽冠亚军
gǔ ài líng U xíng chǎng dì jì qiǎo jué sài duó jīn zhōng guó duì bāo lǎn guàn yà jūn
Gu Ailing won the gold medal in the U-shaped court skills final, and the Chinese team won the championship and runner-up
自由式滑雪男子U型场地技巧预赛结束 4名中国选手均..
zì yóu shì huá xuě nán zǐ U xíng chǎng dì jì qiǎo yù sài jié shù 4 míng zhōng guó xuǎn shǒu jūn . .
Freestyle skiing men's halfpipe skills preliminaries ended with 4 Chinese athletes:
你碰巧认识了布朗教授吗？
Nǐ pèngqiǎo rènshi le Bùlǎng jiàoshòu ma?
Do you happen to know Professor Brown?
这是巧克力曲奇吗？
Zhè shì qiǎokèlì qǔqí ma?
Is this a chocolate chip cookie?
什么？你把我的巧克力熊吃了？！
Shénme? nǐ bǎ wǒ de qiǎokèlì xióng chī le?!
What?! You ate my chocolate bear?!
虽然她节食, 巧克力蛋糕仍然诱惑着她。
Suīrán tā jiéshí, qiǎokèlì dàngāo réngrán yòuhuò zhe tā.
Even though she is dieting, the chocolate cake still tempts her.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 巧 (qiǎo) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 巧 and 考?
How many strokes does 巧 have?
What is the radical of 巧?
What are the components of 巧?
What are common words containing 巧?
What characters sound the same as 巧 (qiǎo)?
Is 巧 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 巧 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear native pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.