捞油水
lāo yóu shuǐ · (coll.) to gain profit (usu. by underhand means)
Character breakdown
Study each Hanzi separately, then return to the complete word so pronunciation, meaning, and movement stay connected.
How to learn 捞油水
Listen once without reading, repeat the pinyin with its tones, then write every character in sequence. Finally, recall the complete meaning instead of memorizing each character as an isolated translation.
When the word appears in a sentence, check whether its part of speech and meaning match the definition shown here. Chinese words can change nuance with context.
Words with the same characters
Compare how a familiar Hanzi changes meaning inside another word.
surname Shui; water; (after a name) ... River; to swim (used mostly in 會水|会水[hui4 shui3] and 水性[shui3 xing4]); (coll.) lacking in substance; shoddy; (bound form) additional cost; extra income; classifier for washings of a garment
水果shuǐguǒfruit; CL:個|个[ge4]
矿泉水kuàngquánshuǐmineral water; CL:瓶[ping2],杯[bei1]
水平shuǐpínghorizontal; level; a standard; a level (of ability, development etc)
加油jiāyóuto add oil; to top up with gas; to refuel; to accelerate; to step on the gas; (fig.) to make an extra effort; to cheer sb on
加油站jiāyóuzhàngas station