酷

kù

告 + 酉

HSK 3.0Level 6

Definitions

kù (adjective) cool; hip

kù (adjective) ruthless; cruel

kù (adjective) strong (of wine; alcohol)

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 酉 represents the meaning and 告 represents the sound.

Semantic: 酉 Phonetic: 告

About

酷 is a phono-semantic compound: the component 酉, depicting a fermentation vessel, gives the meaning 'alcohol', and 告 provides the sound. Originally it referred to liquor that was exceptionally strong and thick. The notion of intensity in the liquor's flavor later extended metaphorically to harsh human behavior, yielding meanings like cruel, oppressive, or ruthless. In modern usage, the character was borrowed as a phonetic loan to transcribe the English slang "cool", which is now its most frequent application in popular culture.

Etymology Hide

Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

你的鞋子很酷。

Nǐ de xiézi hěn kù.

Your shoes are cool.

这个游戏真酷！

Zhège yóuxì zhēn kù!

This game is really cool!

他穿了一件酷外套。

Tā chuānle yī jiàn kù wàitào.

He wore a cool jacket.

夏天酷热难耐。

Xiàtiān kùrè nánnài.

Summer heat is extremely hard to bear.

她的性格有点冷酷。

Tā de xìnggé yǒudiǎn lěngkù.

Her personality is a bit cold and aloof.

酷炫的灯光让派对更精彩。

Kùxuàn de dēngguāng ràng pàiduì gèng jīngcǎi.

The cool and dazzling lights made the party more exciting.

在酷寒的冬天，他仍然坚持跑步。

Zài kùhán de dōngtiān, tā réngrán jiānchí pǎobù.

In the extremely cold winter, he still insists on running.

尽管遭遇酷刑，他也没有屈服。

Jǐnguǎn zāoyù kùxíng, tā yě méiyǒu qūfú.

Despite suffering cruel torture, he did not yield.

Related Characters

Component: 告

Component: 酉

酷