淆 (xiáo): confused and disorderly, mixed
淆 (xiáo) is a Chinese character meaning “confused and disorderly.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 氵 (semantic) and 肴 (phonetic). It ranks #2860 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 淆 water. Its radical form 氵 (water) appears in many related characters such as 水 (shuǐ, water), 汉 (hàn, Han ethnic group), 汽 (qì, steam).
Definitions
- confused and disorderly
- mixed
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 淆 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 混淆verb | hùn xiáo | to obscure |
| 混淆视听phrase | hùn xiáo shì tīng | to obscure the facts (idiom) |
| 混淆是非phrase | hùn xiáo shì fēi | to confuse right and wrong (idiom) |
| 混淆黑白 | hùn xiáo hēi bái | to confuse black and white |
| 淆乱adjective | xiáo luàn | to confuse |
| 淆杂 | xiáo zá | to mix up |
淆 appears in 6 compound words: 33 as the first character, 17 as the last, and 50 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 淆 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (3)
to confuse black and white; to say that black is white; fig. not to distinguish right from wrong
to mislead the public with prevarication and deliberate falsehoods; to obscure the facts
to confuse black and white; to say that black is white; fig. not to distinguish right from wrong
to mislead the public with prevarication and deliberate falsehoods; to obscure the facts
Example Sentences
清晨的淆面波光粼粼,倒映着岸边的柳树。
qīng chén de xiáo miàn bō guāng 粼 粼 , dǎo yìng zhe àn biān de liǔ shù .
The early morning mist shimmered on the water's surface, reflecting the willow trees along the shore.
一些健康误区要注意科学辨识,防止因混淆症状而造成误判、延误治疗。
yī xiē jiàn kāng wù qū yāo zhù yì kē xué biàn shí , fáng zhǐ yīn hùn xiáo zhèng zhuàng ér zào chéng wù pàn , yán wù zhì liáo .
It is important to scientifically distinguish between common health misconceptions to prevent misdiagnosis and delays in treatment caused by confusion over symptoms.
这相当于为策略增加一种紧凑的“动作记忆”,避免单帧观察造成的状态混淆。
zhè xiāng dāng yú wéi cè lüè zēng jiā yī zhǒng jǐn còu de dòng zuò jì yì , bì miǎn dān 帧 guàn chá zào chéng de zhuàng tài hùn xiáo .
This is equivalent to adding a compact "action memory" to the policy, which prevents state confusion caused by single-frame observations.
精准辨别杜绝误采 野外野草种类繁杂,不少人容易将艾草与茼蒿、野菊花混淆。
jīng zhǔn biàn bié dù jué wù cǎi yě wài yě cǎo zhǒng lèi fán zá , bù shǎo rén róng yì jiāng ài cǎo yǔ 茼 蒿 , yě jú huā hùn xiáo .
Accurate Identification to Prevent Mistakes: With such a wide variety of wild plants, many people easily confuse mugwort with Chinese chrysanthemum or wild chrysanthemum.
设置里还可以调节混淆频率、指定时间段等。
shè zhì lǐ hái kě yǐ diào jié hùn xiáo pín lǜ , zhǐ dìng shí jiān duàn děng .
In the settings, you can also adjust the shuffling frequency, specify time periods, and more.
...发声!指“2关键”怒轰社工陈尚洁:企图混淆视听
. . . fā shēng ! zhǐ 2 guān jiàn nù hōng shè gōng chén shàng jié : qǐ tú hùn xiáo shì tīng
...speaks out! Cites "two key points" to harshly criticize social worker Chen Shangjie: attempting to confuse the public
我又把它们混淆了!
Wǒ yòu bǎ tāmen hùnxiáo le!
I mixed them up again!
不要把奥地利和澳大利亚混淆。
Bù yào bǎ àodìlì hé àodàlìyà hùnxiáo.
Don't confuse Austria with Australia.
这两个词容易混淆。
Zhè liǎng gè cí róngyì hùnxiáo.
These two words are easily confused.
别混淆美洲和美国,美洲人和美国人。
Bié hùnxiáo Měizhōu hé Měiguó, Měizhōurén hé Měiguórén.
Don't mix up the Americas with the United States of America, or citizens of the Americas with citizens of the United States.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 氵 (water) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 淆 (xiáo) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 淆 have?
What is the radical of 淆?
What are the components of 淆?
What are common words containing 淆?
What characters sound the same as 淆 (xiáo)?
Is 淆 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 淆 with real-time feedback
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