Meaning of 看好
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to regard as having good prospects
- to keep an eye on
How to use 看好
With the fourth tone kàn, 看好 is common in business, sports and news to say someone or something has good prospects. Example: 很多人看好这家公司。(Hěn duō rén kànhǎo zhè jiā gōngsī.) Many people think this company has a bright future. With the first tone kān, it means to watch over something, as in 看好你的包 (kānhǎo nǐ de bāo), keep an eye on your bag.
看 (kàn) is a hand 手 held over an eye 目, like shading your eyes to look far ahead. 看好 means you look ahead at something and see it as 好 (hǎo), good, so you expect it to succeed.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 看好 (kànhǎo) with 好看 (hǎokàn). Reversing the order changes the meaning from "to be optimistic about" to "good-looking." Also remember that the "keep an eye on" sense uses the first tone, kān, not kàn.
看好 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.
看 kàn · to see · 9 strokes
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好 hǎo · good · 6 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 看好.
| 看到 | kàndào | to see |
| 最好 | zuìhǎo | best; had better ...; it would be best to ... |
| 看见 | kànjiàn | to see; to catch sight of |
| 好吃 | hǎochī | tasty; delicious |
| 好看 | hǎokàn | good-looking; nice-looking; (of a movie, book, TV show etc) good |
| 好听 | hǎotīng | pleasant to hear |
| 爱好 | àihào | to like; to be fond of; to take pleasure in; to be keen on; interest; hobby |
| 看病 | kànbìng | to visit a doctor; to see a patient |
| 好玩儿 | hǎowánr | erhua variant of 好玩[hao3 wan2] |
| 好像 | hǎoxiàng | as if; to seem like |
| 不好意思 | bù hǎoyìsi | to feel embarrassed; to find it embarrassing |
| 好多 | hǎoduō | many; quite a lot |
Questions about 看好
What does 看好 mean?
看好 (kànhǎo) means "to regard as having good prospects" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 看好?
看好 is made of 2 characters: 看 (9 strokes), 好 (6 strokes). That is 15 strokes in total.
Is 看好 an HSK word?
Yes. 看好 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do I say I am not optimistic about something with 看好?
Put 不 in front: 我不看好这个计划 (wǒ bù kànhǎo zhège jìhuà), I don't think this plan will work. You can also say 不被看好 (bù bèi kànhǎo) for "not expected to succeed."
Can 看好 also mean "finished reading" or "decided on"?
Yes. In casual speech 看 plus the result complement 好 can mean you finished looking at something or picked something out, as in 我看好了一套房子 (wǒ kànhǎo le yí tào fángzi), I've found a flat I like. Context and the particle 了 usually make this meaning clear.