You Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Speech (yán) Qiao Kangxi strokes: 19 Page 1182, Entry 02 In archaic script, it is written as Qiao. Pronounced qiao (falling tone). According to the Shuowen Jiezi (Explaining Graphs and Analyzing Characters), it is defined as annoying or clamorous. According to the Guangya (Broad Refinement), it is defined as to scold. According to the Guangyun (Broad Rhymes), it is defined as to blame. According to the Zengyun (Expanded Rhymes), it is defined as to blame using words. According to the Yangzi Fangyan (Regional Dialects), it is defined as to reprimand; in the regions of Qi, Chu, Song, Wei, and Jing, one says qiao. In the regions of Qin and Jin to the west of Hangu Pass, whenever people speak of blaming one another, it is called qiaorang. According to the Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), Biography of Lord Wanshi, when his descendants committed faults, he would not scold them, but would sit on a side seat facing the dining table and refuse to eat. According to the Book of Han (Hanshu), Annals of Emperor Gao, Fan Kuai also scolded Xiang Yu. According to the commentary by Yan Shigu, qiaorang means to blame using words. According to the Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), Biography of Fan Kuai, it is written as qiaorang. The characters qiao and qiao were interchangeable in antiquity. Refer to the entry for Qiao for further details. It is also the name of a mountain and a river. According to the Classic of Mountains and Seas (Shanhaijing), on Mount Qiaoming, the Qiao River originates and flows west into the Yellow River. Also, pronounced qiao (level tone). It is an alternative term for a type of tower. According to the Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), Hereditary House of Chen She, the garrison commander fought within the Qiao gate. According to the commentary by Yan Shigu, a qiao gate means a gate built with a tall tower on top, used for observing distant areas. The tower is also called a qiao, so a beautiful tower is called a liqiao. Qiao is also known as chao. The so-called chao vehicle is also a military vehicle equipped with a tower for observing the enemy. Qiao and chao are similar in pronunciation and were originally the same thing. According to the Zhuangzi, Xu Wugui, grand military formations were arranged between the liqiao. It is also a country name. According to the Zuo Commentary (Zuozhuan), Yin Year 2, commentary by Du Yu, Qiao state is located southeast of Longkang County, at Xiangcheng. It is also a county name. Pei Commandery had Qiao County. See the Book of Han (Hanshu), Treatise on Geography. It is also a surname. There was Qiao Zhou. See the Book of the Later Han (Hou Hanshu), Treatise on the Five Elements. It is also used as a loan character for qiao (to gather wood). According to the Book of Han (Hanshu), Biography of Zhao Chongguo, the troops protected one another and constructed moats, ramparts, and wooden lookout towers. According to the commentary by Yan Shigu, qiao is the same as qiao. It is also used as a loan character for jiao (to scorch). According to the Book of Odes (Shijing), Bin Feng, my feathers are sparse and withered. According to the Mao Commentary, qiaoqiao refers to the appearance of being withered and sparse. According to the Zheng Jian (Zheng Xuan's Commentary), some versions of the text write qiao as jiao. Also, pronounced shui. According to the Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), Biography of Wei Wan, after Emperor Jing ascended the throne, for over a year he did not scold Wei Wan. The commentary by Sima Zhen says: qiaohe is pronounced shuihe, meaning to interrogate or cross-examine.