漂亮
pretty; beautiful
piàoliang
What does 漂亮 mean?
漂亮 (piàoliang) is the everyday Chinese adjective for 'pretty / beautiful / good-looking.' It describes people (especially women, though men too), clothing, objects, scenery, and even abstract things like a well-played game or a skilled move ('一个漂亮的进球' — a beautiful goal).
The second syllable 亮 is normally fourth tone but reduces to a neutral tone (light, unstressed) inside this word, which is why dictionaries write it piàoliang, not piàoliàng. Two notes for English speakers: first, 漂亮 is more casual and broader than 美丽 (měilì), which is more literary and reserved for scenery, poetry, and writing; second, 漂亮 can also be used adverbially as praise — 干得漂亮 'beautifully done' / 'nice job.'
Character breakdown
to float; to be elegant (water radical 氵)
bright; shining
Memory hook: Floating (漂) and bright (亮) — light, lovely, and dazzling.
Example sentences
你今天很漂亮。
Nǐ jīntiān hěn piàoliang.
You look very pretty today.
spoken
这件衣服真漂亮。
Zhè jiàn yīfu zhēn piàoliang.
This piece of clothing is really pretty.
spoken
她有一双漂亮的眼睛。
Tā yǒu yì shuāng piàoliang de yǎnjing.
She has a pair of beautiful eyes.
neutral
干得漂亮！
Gàn de piàoliang!
Nicely done!
spoken
Common phrases with 漂亮
Hear it in real Fluentide episodes
漂亮 appears in 4 podcast episodes at natural native speed, with full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
Synonyms
好看 literally 'good to look at.' Slightly more casual and broader than 漂亮 — used for movies, books, clothes, faces. 漂亮 emphasizes prettiness; 好看 just means visually pleasant. 这本书很好看 = 'this book is good (a good read)' — you wouldn't say 这本书很漂亮.
美 means 'beautiful,' more literary and a touch stronger. Common in writing and compounds (美丽, 美女). In speech, 漂亮 is what you reach for in casual praise; 美 sounds more formal or poetic.
美丽