调侃
tiáo kǎn · HSK 7
idle talk
调 tune/needle + 侃 idle chatter = tuning chatter into teasing
调 (tiáo) is to adjust or needle; 侃 (kǎn) means to chat or banter freely. Put together, 调侃 is talk that needles someone for fun: light mockery, ribbing, idle teasing.
调 — speech radical 讠(言) + 周 zhōu (phonetic)
调 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The 讠(言) radical signals 'speech' or 'words,' while 周 supplies the sound. Originally meaning to harmonize or coordinate through words, it later extended to 'tune,' 'adjust,' and 'melody' (read diào), and 'mix evenly' or 'mediate' (read tiáo).