Meaning of 空儿
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- spare time
- free time
How to use 空儿
空儿 is a colloquial noun, common in northern speech, and usually appears with 有 (yǒu) or 没 (méi). People use it to ask if someone is free or to say they are too busy. Example: 你明天有空儿吗？(Nǐ míngtiān yǒu kòngr ma?) Are you free tomorrow?
空 (kōng) means empty, and 儿 adds the casual spoken ending. An empty slot in your day is your 空儿 (kòngr), your free time.
Common mistake: Learners often read it with the first tone, kōng, which means empty or sky. In the sense of free time it takes the fourth tone, kòng. Another error is saying 我很空儿. Use 我有空儿 (wǒ yǒu kòngr) instead.
空儿 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.
空 kōng · empty · 8 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
儿 ér · son · 2 strokes
- 1
- 2
Related words
Words that share a character with 空儿.
| 这儿 | zhèr | here |
| 儿子 | érzi | son |
| 哪儿 | nǎr | where?; wherever; anywhere; somewhere |
| 女儿 | nǚ'ér | daughter |
| 那儿 | nàr | there |
| 一会儿 | yīhuìr | a moment; a while |
| 没事儿 | méishìr | to have spare time; free from work |
| 一点儿 | yīdiǎnr | erhua variant of 一點|一点[yi1 dian3] |
| 女孩儿 | nǚháir | erhua form of 女孩[nu : 3 hai2] |
| 一块儿 | yīkuàir | erhua variant of 一塊|一块[yi1 kuai4] |
| 玩儿 | wánr | to play; to have fun |
| 小孩儿 | xiǎoháir | erhua variant of 小孩[xiao3 hai2] |
Questions about 空儿
What does 空儿 mean?
空儿 (kòngr) means "spare time; free time" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 空儿?
空儿 is made of 2 characters: 空 (8 strokes), 儿 (2 strokes). That is 10 strokes in total.
Is 空儿 an HSK word?
Yes. 空儿 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 空儿 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 空儿 is written 空兒.
What is the difference between 空儿 and 空 in 有空?
They mean the same thing. 有空 (yǒu kòng) is the standard form used everywhere, and 有空儿 (yǒu kòngr) adds the northern erhua sound. In southern China and Taiwan most people just say 有空.
How is 空儿 different from 时间 (shíjiān)?
时间 is the general word for time and works in any register. 空儿 specifically means free time when you are not busy, and it sounds casual and spoken. For example, 没空儿 means I am busy, while 没时间 can also simply mean there is not enough time.