Chinese word

瞅

Pronunciation

Pinyinchǒu

Meaning

  • verbtake a quick look

Example

他从门口瞅了一眼就走了。tā cóng mén kǒu chǒu le yì yǎn jiù zǒu le

He took a quick look from the doorway and left.

Illustration for 瞅 (take a quick look)

More examples

她偷偷在窗外瞅了一眼，确认没人后进屋。tā tōu tōu zài chuāng wài chǒu le yì yǎn què rèn méi rén hòu jìn wū

She secretly took a quick look outside the window, made sure no one was there, and went inside.

Core concept

A brief, casual movement of the eyes toward something, often just enough to notice it.

Common phrases

  • 瞅一眼chǒu yì yǎn

    take a quick look

  • 瞅了瞅chǒu le chǒu

    take a quick look

Similar words

看kàn: Directing the eyes toward someone or something to see how it looks or is doing.
瞧qiáo: Casting a light, brief look at someone or something in casual speech.

Definition in Chinese

用眼睛短时间随意看一下，指匆匆或随便的一瞥，通常用于口语。yòng yǎn jīng duǎn shí jiān suí yì kàn yí xià zhǐ cōng cōng huò suí biàn de yì piē tōng cháng yòng yú kóu yǔ

Word origin

瞅 (chǒu, "to take a quick look") is built as 目 (mù, "eye") plus 秋 (qiū, "autumn"), a meaning-and-sound structure that helps connect the character with seeing and its colloquial northern origin.

Usage tips

  • This is a strongly conversational verb, so it fits informal chat and spoken narration better than formal writing; its casual tone marks a quick, low-effort glance rather than careful viewing.

Other meanings

  • peekverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 瞅瞅chǒu chǒutake a quick lookverb
  • 瞅见chǒu jiàncatch sight ofverb

Word lists with this word