智商
zhìshāng
In Chinese, IQ (intelligence quotient) is expressed as 智商 (zhìshāng).
While 智商 is the standard Chinese term, people also frequently use the English abbreviation IQ in modern, casual contexts or during online communication.
Meaning: abbreviation of intelligence quotient (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
智商 is a contraction of two parts: 智力 (zhìlì), meaning intelligence and 商 (shāng), meaning quotient or coefficient.
Which one should you use?
智商 is the formal Chinese term for intelligence quotient, whereas IQ is a common English abbreviation often used in casual conversation and online settings within Chinese-speaking environments.
How do you pronounce it?
zhìshāng
Did you know?
- If you want to talk about someone having a 'high IQ' in a joking way, you might describe them as having 'high 智商' but also use the term '脑回路' (nǎohuílù), which literally means 'brain circuitry', to describe their unusual way of thinking.
- The character 商 in 智商 is the same character used for 'merchant' or 'commerce' in Chinese. In this context, however, it refers to the mathematical operation of division.
- While 智商 refers to intelligence, you can use the same suffix 商 to create the term 情商 (qíngshāng), which refers to emotional intelligence or EQ.
Examples in context
- 他的智商很高。Tā de zhìshāng hěn gāo.His IQ is very high.
- 这个测试可以测量智商。Zhège cèshì kěyǐ cèliáng zhìshāng.This test can measure IQ.
- 我不确定我的智商是多少。Wǒ bù quèdìng wǒ de zhìshāng shì duōshǎo.I am not sure what my IQ is.
Example conversation
Zhiqiang and Yuting are discussing a challenging puzzle.
- 志强 Zhiqiang这个谜题太难了。Zhège mítí tài nán le.This puzzle is too difficult.
- 雨婷 Yuting这需要很高的智商。Zhè xūyào hěn gāo de zhìshāng.This requires a high IQ.
- 志强 Zhiqiang你觉得你能解开吗？Nǐ juéde nǐ néng jiěkāi ma?Do you think you can solve it?
- 雨婷 Yuting让我试一试，雨婷可以的。Ràng wǒ shì yī shì, Yǔtíng kěyǐ de.Let me try, Yuting can do it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “iq” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
