How to Write 僚 (liáo) — Meaning “official; colleague; companion”

Imagine a person (亻) standing next to a tall building (尞 looks like a tower with a roof and a small bottom). This person is your "colleague" who works in that building. The sound "liáo" can remind you of "leap" — your colleague leaps into action at work.

This character has 14 strokes. Write the left radical 亻 first, making it narrow. For the right part 尞, start with the top horizontal, then the 日 (sun) component, and finally the bottom 小 (small) — but note that the vertical stroke of 小 goes straight down and ends with a small hook. Do not confuse the bottom with a regular 小; the vertical is longer.

僚 means official or colleague, while 傅 (fù) means teacher or tutor (e.g., 师傅 shīfu) and 傈 (lì) is used only in the name of the Lisu ethnic group. Visually, 傅 has a right side with 尃 (containing 甫 and 寸), and 傈 has a right side with 栗 (tree over show), whereas 僚 has 尞 with 日 and 小.

僚 appears in formal words like 同僚 (tóng liáo, colleague) for work peers, 官僚 (guān liáo, bureaucrat) often with a negative sense of red tape, and 幕僚 (mù liáo, advisor) referring to staff or aides. You would use these words in professional or political contexts, not in casual conversation.

Common words containing 僚 include: 同僚 (tóng liáo) — Colleague or peer; 官僚 (guān liáo) — Bureaucrat; 幕僚 (mù liáo) — aide / staff / advisor.