Meaning of 灵活
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- flexible
- nimble
- agile
How to use 灵活
灵活 describes both physical agility and flexible thinking, plans, or rules. It often appears in phrases like 灵活运用 (línghuó yùnyòng, to apply flexibly) and 时间很灵活 (the schedule is flexible). Example: 他的手指很灵活。(Tā de shǒuzhǐ hěn línghuó.) His fingers are very nimble.
灵 (líng) means quick-witted or spirited, and 活 (huó) means alive, the same 活 you see in 生活 (shēnghuó). Something that is spirited and alive can move and adapt easily, so 灵活 means flexible or nimble.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes confuse 灵活 with 活泼 (huópō). 活泼 describes a lively, outgoing personality, while 灵活 is about being adaptable or agile. Also keep the tones as second plus second: líng huó, not lǐng huò.
灵活 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.
灵 líng · quick · 7 strokes
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活 huó · to live · 9 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 灵活.
| 生活 | shēnghuó | to live; life |
| 活动 | huódòng | to exercise; to move about; to work out; shaky; unsteady; loose (tooth etc) |
| 干活儿 | gànhuór | erhua variant of 幹活|干活[gan4 huo2] |
| 活力 | huólì | energy; vitality |
| 快活 | kuàihuo | happy; cheerful |
| 活泼 | huópō | lively; vivacious |
| 心灵 | xīnlíng | bright; smart |
| 活跃 | huóyuè | active; lively |
| 生活费 | shēnghuófèi | cost of living; living expenses |
| 灵魂 | línghún | soul; spirit |
| 复活 | fùhuó | to revive; (lit. and fig.) to come back to life |
| 灵感 | línggǎn | creative inspiration |
Questions about 灵活
What does 灵活 mean?
灵活 (línghuó) means "flexible; nimble" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 灵活?
灵活 is made of 2 characters: 灵 (7 strokes), 活 (9 strokes). That is 16 strokes in total.
Is 灵活 an HSK word?
Yes. 灵活 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 灵活 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 灵活 is written 靈活.
Can 灵活 describe a person's personality?
It usually describes how someone thinks or acts, not their mood. 他脑子很灵活 (Tā nǎozi hěn línghuó) means he is quick-thinking and adaptable. For a cheerful, energetic personality, use 活泼 instead.
Is 灵活 positive or can it be negative?
It is almost always positive, suggesting adaptability and skill. To say someone bends rules too much, Chinese speakers tend to use other words, though 太灵活 can sometimes hint at being too loose with principles.