Chinese word

搞

Pronunciation

Pinyingǎo

Meaning

  • verbdo

Example

你在搞什么？nǐ zài gǎo shén me

What are you doing?

Illustration for 搞 (do)

More examples

这个问题他还没搞清楚。zhè ge wèn tí tā hái méi gǎo qīng chǔ

He still hasn't figured out this problem.

Core concept

Starting an activity and handling it in a practical, hands-on way, often without naming the exact task.

Common phrases

  • 搞清楚gǎo qīng chǔ

    figure out

  • 搞定gǎo dìng

    get it done

  • 搞错gǎo cuò

    get wrong

  • 搞砸gǎo zá

    mess up

Similar words

做zuò: A general verb for carrying out an action, task, or piece of work.
干gàn: An informal verb for doing a job or dealing with a task.
弄nòng: To use the hands or a method to make, change, or handle something, often casually.
从事cóng shì: To engage in a job, profession, or field of work in a formal style.

Definition in Chinese

表示做某事或着手处理某事，常用于口语，指开始并进行一项行为或工作，也可表示把事情办成。biǎo shì zuò mǒu shì huò zhuó shǒu chú lǐ mǒu shì cháng yòng yú kóu yǔ zhǐ kāi shǐ bìng jìn xíng yí xiàng xíng wéi huò gōng zuò yě kě biǎo shì bǎ shì qíng bàn chéng

Word origin

搞 (gǎo, "do") is a phonetic-semantic character: 扌 (shǒu, "hand") points to physical action, while 高 (gāo, "high") mainly supplies the pronunciation.

Usage tips

  • For English speakers, 搞 (gǎo, "do") can feel unusually broad because context may supply whether the activity means working on something, tinkering with it, or bringing about a result.

Other meanings

  • fiddle withverb
  • work onverb
  • causeverb

Related words

Word lists with this word