to cry; to weep
HSK level
哭 is written with 10 strokes. The animation replays automatically.
哭 (kū) is the standard Chinese verb for crying — the physical act of producing tears, whether from sadness, pain, joy, or frustration.
It covers everything from a baby's wail to a quiet adult cry to sobbing at a funeral, where English splits the action into 'cry,' 'weep,' 'sob,' and 'bawl.' Two notes for English speakers: first, 哭 is the act itself, not the emotion behind it, so you often pair it with a reason — 哭着说 (kūzhe shuō, 'say while crying'), 哭出来 (kū chūlái, 'cry it out'), or 想哭 (xiǎng kū, 'feel like crying').
Second, the opposite is 笑 (xiào, to laugh/smile), and the two are often contrasted: 又哭又笑 means 'crying and laughing at the same time.' The character pictures two mouths (口口) over a dog (犬) — a folk image of a howling cry.
哭 appears in 1 Fluentide podcast episode at natural native speed — each with the full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
Browse the full episode library孩子哭了，妈妈很着急。
Háizi kū le, māma hěn zháojí.
The child started crying, and mom was anxious.
neutral
别哭了，没事的。
Bié kū le, méi shì de.
Don't cry, it's okay.
spoken
他听到这个消息，哭了出来。
Tā tīngdào zhège xiāoxi, kū le chūlái.
When he heard the news, he burst into tears.
neutral
我昨天看那部电影，哭了一个小时。
Wǒ zuótiān kàn nà bù diànyǐng, kū le yí ge xiǎoshí.
I watched that movie yesterday and cried for an hour.
spoken
流泪 ('shed tears') is more literary and focuses on the tears themselves — often silent crying. 哭 is the everyday verb for the whole act, including the sound.
哭泣 is the written/formal version of 哭 — common in novels and news, rare in speech. Say 哭 with friends; reserve 哭泣 for writing.
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