交代 meaning in English
to transfer (duties to sb else); to give instructions; to tell (sb to do sth)
Meaning of 交代
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to transfer (duties to sb else)
- to give instructions; to tell (sb to do sth)
- to explain; to give an account; to brief
- to confess; to account for oneself
- (jocular) to come to a bad end
How to use 交代
交代 is used when a boss or parent gives instructions, when someone explains what happened, and when a suspect confesses. It often takes 清楚 (qīngchu) to stress a full explanation. Example: 妈妈交代我早点回家。(Māma jiāodài wǒ zǎo diǎn huí jiā.) Mom told me to come home early.
交 (jiāo) means to hand over, as in 交给 (jiāo gěi), and 代 (dài) means to take someone's place, as in 代表 (dàibiǎo). When you hand your duties to the person replacing you, you have to explain everything, so 交代 means to hand over, instruct, or give an account.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 交代 with 交待, a variant spelling also read jiāodài. Many dictionaries treat 交代 as the standard form, so use 交代 in writing. Also keep the fourth tone on 代 (dài) and do not flatten it.
交代 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
交 jiāo · to hand over · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
代 dài · to be a substitute for · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Related words
Words that share a character with 交代.
| 交给 | jiāo gěi | to give; to deliver; to hand over |
| 交通 | jiāotōng | to be connected; traffic |
| 交朋友 | jiāo péngyou | to make friends; (dialect) to start an affair with sb |
| 公交车 | gōngjiāochē | public transport vehicle; town bus |
| 代表 | dàibiǎo | representative; delegate |
| 交易 | jiāoyì | to deal; to trade; to transact; transaction; deal |
| 时代 | shídài | age; era |
| 交流 | jiāoliú | to exchange; exchange |
| 年代 | niándài | a decade of a century (e.g. the Sixties); age |
| 交往 | jiāowǎng | to associate (with); to have contact (with) |
| 现代 | xiàndài | modern times; modern age |
| 古代 | gǔdài | ancient times |
Questions about 交代
What does 交代 mean?
交代 (jiāodài) means "to transfer (duties to sb else); to give instructions; to tell (sb to do sth)" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 交代?
交代 is made of 2 characters: 交 (6 strokes), 代 (5 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 交代 an HSK word?
Yes. 交代 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 给我一个交代 mean?
It means "give me an explanation" or "you owe me an account of this." Here 交代 works like a noun. People say it when they feel wronged and want someone to take responsibility.
How is 交代 different from 解释 (jiěshì)?
解释 simply means to explain or clarify something. 交代 suggests a duty to report or account for something to a person with authority or a right to know, and it can also mean giving instructions or confessing.