Meaning of 听
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to listen to; to hear
- to heed; to obey
- a can (loanword from English "tin")
- classifier for canned beverages
- to let be; to allow (Taiwan pr. [ting4])
- (literary) to administer; to deal with (Taiwan pr. [ting4])
- smile (archaic)
How to use 听
听 is the everyday verb for listening to music, people, or advice, and it also means to obey, as in 听话 (tīnghuà, to be obedient). To say you actually heard something, add a result: 听到 or 听见. Example: 我喜欢听音乐。(Wǒ xǐhuan tīng yīnyuè.) I like listening to music.
听 has a mouth 口 on the left and 斤 on the right. Picture someone's mouth talking while you lean in to listen.
Common mistake: Learners often use 听 alone when they mean "heard". 我听了他 does not mean "I heard him". Use 我听见他了 (Wǒ tīngjiàn tā le) for hearing and 听 for the act of listening. Also keep the tone first tone, tīng, not tíng like 停 (to stop).
听 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.
听 tīng · to listen to · 7 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 听.
| 听到 | tīngdào | to hear |
| 听见 | tīngjiàn | to hear |
| 好听 | hǎotīng | pleasant to hear |
| 听写 | tīngxiě | (of a pupil) to write down (in a dictation exercise); dictation; (music) to transcribe by |
| 听说 | tīngshuō | to hear (sth said); one hears (that) |
| 难听 | nántīng | unpleasant to hear; coarse |
| 听讲 | tīngjiǎng | to attend a lecture; to listen to a talk |
| 打听 | dǎting | to ask about; to make some inquiries |
| 听众 | tīngzhòng | audience; listeners |
| 收听 | shōutīng | to listen to (a radio broadcast) |
| 听力 | tīnglì | hearing; listening ability |
| 听取 | tīngqǔ | to hear (news); to listen to |
Questions about 听
What does 听 mean?
听 (tīng) means "to listen to; to hear; to heed; to obey" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 听?
听 is made of 1 character: 听 (7 strokes). That is 7 strokes in total.
Is 听 an HSK word?
Yes. 听 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 听 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 听 is written 聽.
What is the difference between 听说 and 听到?
听说 (tīngshuō) means "I heard that" or "people say", and it passes on news or rumor: 听说他走了 (I heard he left). 听到 (tīngdào) means you physically heard a sound or a voice.
Can 听 be used as a measure word?
Yes. It is a loanword from English "tin" and works as a classifier for cans of drinks, as in 一听可乐 (yì tīng kělè, a can of cola). In everyday speech 一罐 (yí guàn) is also common.