(qióng) - poor, impoverished in Mandarin
qióngTraditional: 窮
Translation
poor, impoverished
Word origin
The traditional form 窮 combines 穴 (xué, cave, a confined space) with 躬 (gōng, a bent body); the image of a body bent double at the end of a passage gives the sense of being at one's limit, extended to poverty.
- Origin
- semantic compound
- Root
- 穴 (xué, cave) + 躬 (gōng, bent body)
Stroke order
穷
Examples
，。
His family is very poor and has no money for school.
。
This village used to be very poor.
。
Poor people also deserve respect.
，。
Although he is poor, he works very hard.
。
When I was young, our family was very poor.
穷 (qióng) is poor, in the sense of lacking money, not the English "poor" as in low-quality. It is a core adjective, always taking a degree word in the predicate: 他很穷 (tā hěn qióng), not a bare 他穷.
The opposite pair is 穷 (qióng) and 富 (fù, rich), and the two are drilled together constantly: 穷人 (qióngrén, a poor person) sits against 富人 (fùrén, a rich person). 穷 also extends past money into "used up" or "exhausted," as in 无穷 (wúqióng), endless or infinite, literally "without limit."
Watch the tone: qióng is second tone, easy to flatten into first tone if you are used to reading 穷 without pinyin support. Get it wrong and a listener will likely still follow you from context, but it is worth fixing early since 穷 (qióng) is common.
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穷: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "穷" (poor, impoverished): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 109.