Meaning of 凶
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- vicious
- fierce
- ominous
- inauspicious
- famine
- variant of 兇|凶[xiong1]
- terrible
- fearful
How to use 凶
凶 describes people or animals that look or act fierce, and things that are unlucky or ominous. In everyday speech it often means someone is harsh or scary in manner. Example: 他说话很凶。(Tā shuōhuà hěn xiōng.) He speaks very harshly.
Picture 凵 as an open pit and 乂 as a cross marking danger inside it. A trap with an X in it looks ominous and fierce, which is what 凶 (xiōng) means.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 凶 with 区 (qū, area), whose frame opens to the right instead of upward. Also keep the first tone xiōng and do not mix it up with 熊 (xióng, bear) or 雄 (xióng, male).
凶 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.
凶 xiōng · vicious · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Related words
Words that share a character with 凶.
| 凶手 | xiōngshǒu | murderer; assassin |
| 凶残 | xiōngcán | savage; cruel |
| 凶猛 | xiōngměng | fierce; violent |
| 凶恶 | xiōng'è | fierce; vicious |
| 凶狠 | xiōnghěn | cruel; vicious |
| 凶器 | xiōngqì | lethal weapon; murder weapon |
| 凶杀案 | xiōngshā'àn | murder case |
| 凶案 | xiōng'àn | murder case |
| 凶杀 | xiōngshā | to murder; assassination |
| 行凶 | xíngxiōng | violent crime; to commit a violent act (assault or murder) |
| 真凶 | zhēnxiōng | culprit |
| 帮凶 | bāngxiōng | accomplice; accessory |
Questions about 凶
What does 凶 mean?
凶 (xiōng) means "vicious; fierce" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 凶?
凶 is made of 1 character: 凶 (4 strokes). That is 4 strokes in total.
Is 凶 an HSK word?
Yes. 凶 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 凶 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 凶 is written 凶|兇.
Is 凶 only about violence, or can it describe normal people?
It is common in daily life for people who are strict or bad-tempered. 妈妈很凶 (Māma hěn xiōng) just means Mom is stern, not violent.
How does 凶 relate to luck?
凶 is the opposite of 吉 (jí, lucky). The pair appears in phrases like 吉凶 (jíxiōng), meaning good and bad fortune, and in fortune telling where 凶 marks an inauspicious sign.