chòu

Traditional: 臭

#1412 of 5,000 Core 5000

Translation

smelly, stinking, foul

Word origin

An ideographic compound of 自 (zì, nose) over 犬 (quǎn, dog), evoking a dog using its nose to track a scent, hence smell and later a bad smell.

Origin
ideograph
Root
自 (zì, nose) + 犬 (quǎn, dog)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 臭

Examples

The rubbish here is very smelly.

xié

His shoes are both dirty and smelly.

This fish has already gone off.

There is a foul smell in the room.

Do not bring up that rotten business again.

臭 (chòu) means smelly, stinking or foul, and figuratively rotten or lousy. It is the natural opposite of 香 (fragrant).

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This word is part of lesson 29.