Chinese word

嬉笑

Pronunciation

Pinyinxī xiào

Meaning

  • verblaugh happily

Example

孩子收到礼物，高兴地嬉笑起来。hái zi shōu dào lǐ wù gāo xìng dì xī xiào qǐ lái

The child began laughing happily after receiving the gift.

Illustration for 嬉笑 (laugh happily)

More examples

他见到老朋友，嬉笑着和大家打招呼。tā jiàn dào lǎo péng yǒu xī xiào zhe hé dà jiā dǎ zhāo hū

When he saw his old friend, he greeted everyone, laughing happily.

Core concept

A gentle outward sign of pleasure, ranging from a soft smile to a light laugh.

Common phrases

  • 嬉笑着xī xiào zhe

    laughing happily

  • 嬉笑道xī xiào dào

    say with a smile

  • 嬉笑而谈xī xiào ér tán

    laugh and chat

Similar words

微笑wēi xiào: Smiling gently with a slight lift at the corners of the mouth.
笑xiào: Laughing or showing amusement through the mouth, face, or voice.
咯咯笑gē gē xiào: Giggling in short, light bursts with a lively, bouncing sound.

Definition in Chinese

表示因愉快而发出的笑或笑容，语气偏柔和、不等于大声或讥笑。biǎo shì yīn yú kuài ér fā chū de xiào huò xiào róng yǔ qì piān róu hé bù děng yú dà shēng huò jī xiào

Word origin

嬉笑 (xīxiào, "laugh happily") combines 嬉 (xī, "joyful") with 笑 (xiào, "laugh"), joining the feeling of delight to its visible or audible expression.

Usage tips

  • The word is most natural when describing an observed reaction in a scene or story, rather than when naming a routine social greeting.

Other meanings

  • smileverb
  • giggleverb
  • grinverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 嬉笑声xī xiào shēngsound of happy laughternoun
  • 嬉笑自若xī xiào zì ruòremain cheerful and composedidiom

Word lists with this word