What 功夫 means
- kung fu
- skill
- art
- labor
These meanings come from the same dictionary that powers the Chinese to Pinyin translator and the Chinese to English translator, so a whole sentence containing 功夫 will read it the same way this page does.
Character by character
How to write 功夫
Stroke order is not decoration — it is what makes handwriting legible and what dictionary lookup by stroke count depends on.
Practise 功夫 on printable 田字格 sheets, trace it in the writing practice tool, or watch any other character in the Stroke Order Animator.
Questions about 功夫
What does 功夫 mean in English?
功夫 is pronounced gōngfu and means kung fu, skill, art, labor.
How do you pronounce 功夫?
功夫 is gōngfu in pinyin — written gongfu without tone marks. Press the audio button on this page to hear it spoken by a native voice.
What are the characters in 功夫?
功夫 is written with 2 characters: 功 (gōng) Contribution (achievement), 夫 (fū) Husband (man). Knowing the parts is usually how the whole word becomes memorable.
Is 功夫 an HSK word?
Yes — 功夫 is on the official HSK 4 vocabulary list. You can study it with the rest of that list on the HSK 4 page.
Studied around the same time
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Translate a whole sentence containing 功夫 with the Chinese to Pinyin translator, study it alongside the rest of HSK 4, drill it with HSK flashcards, or save it above and review it on your review deck.
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