浮薄 (fúbó): frivolous

Meanings

1 frivolous
2 shallow
3 superficial

Characters

浮

fú

to float; superficial

薄

bó

thin; slight

Examples

他批评当今社会风气浮薄。

Tā pīpíng dāngjīn shèhuì fēngqì fúbó.

He criticized today's social atmosphere as frivolous.

这些浮薄的言论不值一驳。

Zhèxiē fúbó de yánlùn bùzhí yī bó.

These shallow remarks aren't worth refuting.

Tips

register

Literary, judgmental, and somewhat dated — found in editorials and classical-flavored prose. In casual speech use 肤浅 (fūqiǎn, shallow) or 轻浮 (qīngfú, flighty).

Stroke Order

浮 fú

薄 báo

Related Words

浮 fú HSK 6 #5,642

to float; to drift on the surface / superficial; on the surface / excessive; inflated

不畏浮云遮望眼 búwèifúyúnzhēwàngyǎn

unafraid that drifting clouds will block my view — not distracted by superficial obstacles, keeping sight of the larger picture / literally: not afraid of floating clouds blocking (my) gazing eye

刻薄 kèbó #4,849

unkind / harsh / mean-spirited / cutting

薄 báo HSK 4 #5,281

thin (of flat objects) / weak; light (of flavor, color) / cold; indifferent (of manner)

浅薄 qiǎnbó #15,731

superficial / shallow

浮叶植物 fúyèzhíwù

floating-leaf plants / floating-leaved aquatic plants

浮游动物 fúyóudòngwù

zooplankton

浮点数 fúdiǎnshù

floating-point number / float

浮水 fúshuǐ

to swim (literary/dialectal) / to float on water

浮出水面 fúchūshuǐmiàn

to float to the surface / (figurative) to come to light / become evident / to surface (of an issue)