Chinese word

可笑

Pronunciation

Pinyinkě xiào

Meaning

  • adjectiveridiculous

Example

他的行为很可笑。tā de xíng wéi hěn kě xiào

His behavior is ridiculous.

Illustration for 可笑 (ridiculous)

More examples

他的说法令人可笑，很难让人信服。tā de shuō fǎ lìng rén kě xiào hěn nán ràng rén xìn fú

What he says is ridiculous and hard for people to believe.

Core concept

Something falls so far outside ordinary sense that it becomes an object of laughter.

Common phrases

  • 令人可笑lìng rén kě xiào

    ridiculous

  • 听起来可笑tīng qǐ lái kě xiào

    sound ridiculous

  • 感到可笑gǎn dào kě xiào

    feel ridiculous

Similar words

有趣yǒu qù: Interesting and enjoyable, holding attention through its appeal or novelty.
好笑hǎo xiào: Amusing in a light, easy way that naturally makes people laugh.
幽默yōu mò: Witty and amusing in language or expression, with a clever quality that makes people laugh.

Definition in Chinese

因荒唐、违背常理或行为滑稽而使人发笑或感到可笑的形容词yīn huāng táng wéi bèi cháng lǐ huò xíng wéi huá jī ér shǐ rén fā xiào huò gǎn dào kě xiào de xíng róng cí

Word origin

可笑 (kěxiào, "ridiculous") combines 可 (kě, "worthy of") + 笑 (xiào, "laughter") to frame something as worthy of laughter, yielding its modern sense of absurd or laughable.

Usage tips

  • In everyday conversation, this word usually judges a person, idea, or action as foolish or absurd, so it can sound openly dismissive rather than warmly playful.

Other meanings

  • comicaladjective
  • sillyadjective
  • laughableverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word