孬 (nāo) - bad & cowardly
孬 · nāo
bad;
cowardly;
wicked;
inferior quality;
not good
badcowardlywicked
Usage highlights
cowardbad personpoor qualitycowardlytimidinferior goods
Usage & contexts
Examples
- That's really bad (孬种).
- Don't be a coward (别孬).
- This product is of poor quality (质量孬).
- He's too timid to speak up (他太孬了，不敢说话).
Collocations
- coward(孬种)
- bad person(孬人)
- poor quality(质量孬)
- cowardly(孬包)
- timid(孬弱)
- inferior goods(孬货)
Idioms
- Good steel is used for making swords (好钢用在刀刃上) - opposite meaning emphasizing quality
- A real man (好汉) - antonym concept
- Good and bad mixed together (好坏参半) - contrasting concept
Cultural background
FAQ- Formed by combining 不 (not) and 好 (good), creating a character that literally means 'not good'
- Commonly used in Northern Chinese dialects, particularly in informal speech
- Carries strong negative connotations about both character quality and moral integrity