妙 miào — clever; wonderful
这个办法真是巧妙极了。Zhè ge bàn fǎ zhēn shì qiǎo miào jí le.This method is really clever.
Common words: 巧妙 (qiǎo miào)、美妙 (měi miào)、奇妙 (qí miào)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "clever"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "clever", including 妙 (miào), 聪 (cōng), 乖 (guāi). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "clever" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 妙 (miào), 聪 (cōng), 乖 (guāi) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span miào, cōng, guāi — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 妙 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 妙 miàoclever; wonderfulUseful words: 巧妙, 美妙
- 聪 cōngquick at hearing; wise; clever; sharp-witted; intelligent; acuteUseful words: 聪明, 失聪
- 乖 guāi(of a child) obedient; well-behaved; cleverUseful words: 乖巧, 学乖
Common words for these 3 "clever" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 妙 (miào) — so "clever" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
巧妙qiǎo miàoingenious; clever; ingenuity; artifice美妙měi miàobeautiful; wonderful; splendid奇妙qí miàowonderful; marvelous; intriguing; mysterious聪明cōng mingintelligent; clever; bright; acute (of sight and hearing)失聪shī cōngto go deaf; to lose one's hearing; deafness; hearing loss聪敏cōng mǐnbright; sharp; quick-witted乖巧guāi qiǎoclever (child); smart; lovable; cute学乖xué guāito learn one's lesson the hard way乖张guāi zhāngrecalcitrant; unreasonable; peevish
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "clever".
聪 cōng — quick at hearing; wise; clever; sharp-witted; intelligent; acute
这个孩子又聪明又懂事。Zhè ge hái zi yòu cōng míng yòu dǒng shì.This child is both clever and sensible.
Common words: 聪明 (cōng ming)、失聪 (shī cōng)、聪敏 (cōng mǐn)
乖 guāi — (of a child) obedient; well-behaved; clever
这个孩子很乖，从来不让大人操心。Zhè ge hái zi hěn guāi, cóng lái bú ràng dà ren cāo xīn.This child is well-behaved and never makes adults worry.
Common words: 乖巧 (guāi qiǎo)、学乖 (xué guāi)、乖张 (guāi zhāng)
All 3 characters
Open 妙、聪、乖 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.