HSK 5 · Adjectives

用功 yònggōng “hard-working (at study)” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 用功 means

  1. hard-working (at study)
  2. diligent
  3. industrious (in one’s studies)
  4. to study hard
  5. to make great effort

How to say 用功

  • Pitch chart of the fourth tone: falls from high to low, 5 to 1 on the five-level scale用yòng4th tone, falling
  • Pitch chart of the first tone: stays high and level, 5 to 5 on the five-level scale功gōng1st tone, high and level

用功 in a sentence

  1. 就我所知，他是个很用功的学生。

    Jiù wǒ suǒzhī, tā shì ge hěn yònggōng de xuésheng.

    As far as I know, he’s a hard-working student.

    Sentence #613894 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  2. 他干活太用功，把身体弄垮了。

    Tā gànhuó tài yònggōng, bǎ shēntǐ nòngkuǎ le.

    He worked so hard that he ruined his health.

    Sentence #11239873 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  3. 他后悔在校时没用功读书。

    Tā hòuhuǐ zài xiào shí méi yònggōng dúshū.

    He regrets not studying harder at school.

    Sentence #332453 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

How 用功 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 用 (yòng) drawn as one shape
用yòngto use; to make use of; to employ

用 is a single shape of 5 strokes. Learn it whole, then watch its stroke order below.

The character 功 (gōng) with each of its parts in a different colour
功gōngmeritorious deed or service
  • 工work · gōng
  • 力strength · lì

How to write 用功

用 5 strokes · 功 5 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

用功 (yònggōng) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 用功 (yònggōng). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 用功

Words with 用

用yòng · to use不用búyòng · no need to有用yǒuyòng · useful常用chángyòng · commonly used信用卡xìnyòngkǎ · credit card使用shǐyòng · to use作用zuòyòng · effect利用lìyòng · to make use of应用yìngyòng · to put to use运用yùnyòng · to use

Words with 功

成功chénggōng · success功夫gōngfu · time and effort功能gōngnéng · function气功qìgōng · qigong (breathing exercises)功劳gōngláo · credit功效gōngxiào · effect急功近利jígōngjìnlì · eager for quick results and profit

More words: Adjectives

硬yìng · hard一致yízhì · consistent意外yìwài · unexpected英俊yīngjùn · handsome拥挤yōngjǐ · crowded优美yōuměi · graceful悠久yōujiǔ · long-standing有利yǒulì · advantageous

FAQs

用功 (yònggōng) means “hard-working (at study)” or “diligent”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it yònggōng: yòng with a 4th tone, then gōng with a 1st tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 用功 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type yonggong with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 用功 from the suggestions. Typing yonggong into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
用功 is an HSK 5 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.