黠 (xiá) - Cunning, crafty, sly & clever, shrewd, astute.

黠Tone 2

xiá ｜ 18 strokes ｜ radical:

万响

黠 · xiá

Cunning, crafty, sly;

clever, shrewd, astute.

Cunning, crafty, slyclever, shrewd, astute.

Usage highlights

cunning and craftyshrewd and cleversly smilecrafty trickcunning villainshrewd and capable

Synonyms

  • 狡— cunning, crafty
  • 猾— sly, crafty
  • 诡— deceitful, tricky

Antonyms

  • 憨— simple, honest, naive
  • 朴— simple, plain, unadorned
  • 诚— sincere, honest

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • He is a cunning person (狡黠的人).
  • The fox is known for its slyness (狐狸以狡猾著称).
  • She gave a shrewd smile (她露出黠慧的微笑).

Collocations

  • cunning and crafty(狡黠)
  • shrewd and clever(黠慧)
  • sly smile(黠笑)
  • crafty trick(黠计)
  • cunning villain(奸黠)
  • shrewd and capable(黠能)

Idioms

  • Cunning as a fox(狡黠如狐)
  • Shrewd and clever, full of tricks(黠慧多端)
  • Crafty and treacherous(黠诈)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Often carries a negative connotation of deceitful cleverness, but can also imply positive shrewdness in some contexts.
  • Frequently used in literary descriptions of characters who are clever but not entirely trustworthy.
  • The character combines 'black' (黑) and 'auspicious' (吉), suggesting a cleverness that may be hidden or not entirely virtuous.

FAQ