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秀

xiù
adjective #1,215

Meanings

  1. 1 refined
  2. 2 elegant
  3. 3 show

Examples

HSK 4
她是我们班最优秀的学生。
Tā shì wǒmen bān zuì yōuxiù de xuésheng.
She is the most outstanding student in our class.
HSK 4
他喜欢秀他的英语水平。
Tā xǐhuan xiù tā de yīngyǔ shuǐpíng.
He likes to show off his English skills.
HSK 7-9
桂林的山水秀丽闻名。
Guìlín de shānshuǐ xiùlì wénmíng.
The scenery of Guilin is famously beautiful.

Tips

usage
禾 (grain) - the finest grain that stands out in the field

Components

radical
禾 hé
grain; standing crop
Top grain radical - the indexing component. A pictograph of a grain plant with drooping head. The original 秀 depicted grain in flower - the most beautiful, elegant stage of the crop, hence the 'refined, elegant, outstanding' senses. The radical anchors the agricultural origin even when the modern meaning is purely abstract.
phonetic
乃 nǎi
then; thus (here historical phonetic)
Bottom 乃 once supplied the sound but the link is now opaque (nǎi vs xiù shows heavy Old Chinese drift). One alternative reading takes the bottom as pictographic - the drooping flowering head of the grain itself. Either way the modern function is graphic; the 'then / thus' meaning of 乃 plays no role.

Stroke Order

秀 xiù