骗
Character Story & Explanation
骗 is widely used in modern Chinese daily life — especially in anti-fraud campaigns, police announcements, and digital safety education. Since China launched its national anti-telecom fraud hotline (96110) in 2021, the term 骗 appears constantly in public service ads: e.g., ‘警惕网络诈骗’ (jǐtì wǎngluò zhàpiàn, 'Beware of online scams'). The idiom ‘骗吃骗喝’ (piàn chī piàn hē, 'to cheat for food and drink') dates back to Ming-Qing vernacular literature, describing freeloading swindlers.
The character’s form evolved from seal script: the left side 马 (mǎ, 'horse') was originally a phonetic component (in Old Chinese, 骗 may have sounded like *m̥rəŋs), while the right side 篇 (piān, 'scroll') was later simplified to 匚+丿+一+亅 — now purely structural. No oracle-bone evidence exists; its earliest attestation is in Song dynasty texts as a colloquial verb for deception.
Hi students! Today we’ll learn 骗 (piàn), a Level 4 HSK character meaning 'to cheat' or 'to deceive'. It’s pronounced with the fourth tone — sharp and falling, like a firm 'no'. Though it contains the 'horse' radical (马), don’t think of horses galloping — this is a phonetic-semantic compound, where 马 hints at pronunciation (older forms sounded closer to 'mǎ'), not meaning. Pay attention: it’s not about physical trickery alone, but intentional deception that misleads trust.
This character appears often in warnings, news headlines, and everyday speech — from online scams to broken promises. Unlike verbs like 欺 (qī, 'to bully') or 诈 (zhà, 'fraud', more formal/legal), 骗 emphasizes successful deception: the victim believes the lie. Its 12 strokes include a distinctive 'bent hook' (the last stroke of the right side) — practice slowly to avoid mistaking it for similar characters like 偏 (piān, 'biased').
As beginners, focus on recognizing 骗 in context — especially in compound words like 骗子 (piànzi, 'scammer') or 骗钱 (piàn qián, 'to scam money'). Don’t just memorize the definition; notice how it carries moral weight in Chinese culture: cheating isn’t just wrong — it breaks social harmony (和, hé). That’s why parents say, 'Don’t be a 骗子 — be honest and trustworthy.' Let’s build integrity, one character at a time!
Example Sentences
Common Compounds
Similar Characters — Don't Mix These Up
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