How to Write 僬 (jiāo) — Meaning “clever / nimble”

Picture a clever person (亻) who is so fast that they can catch a bird on fire (焦). This image combines 'person' with 'burning bird' to remind you of nimbleness. You can also associate it with the word 僬侥 (pygmy), imagining a tiny but quick person.

The right side 焦 has nine strokes: the top part 隹 should be written with four evenly spaced horizontal strokes, and the bottom 火 must be small and centered. A common mistake is making the right side too tall or the fire too large, which unbalances the character.

All three have the person radical 亻, but their right sides differ. 僬 has 焦 (bird + fire) and means 'clever/nimble'. 傅 has 尃 and means 'teacher' or 'to assist'. 傈 has 粟 (millet) and is used in the ethnic name 傈僳 (Lisu). Visually, 僬's right side is unique with its bird and fire.

僬 is very rare in modern Chinese and appears mostly in ancient texts, such as the word 僬侥 (jiāo yáo) referring to a mythical dwarf people. You might also see it in classical literature describing a nimble scout (僬卒). It is not used in daily conversation and is not part of the HSK vocabulary.

Common words containing 僬 include: 僬侥 (jiāo yáo) — pygmy / dwarf; 僬卒 (jiāo zú) — nimble scout; 僬察 (jiāo chá) — to observe carefully.