强调 means 'to emphasize' or 'to stress' — to give special importance or attention to something in speech or writing. The character 强 (qiáng) means 'strong' or 'powerful', and 调 (diào) here functions as a verb meaning 'to adjust' or 'to modulate', together forming a compound verb that conveys the idea of 'intensifying focus' on a point, idea, or requirement. It is commonly used in academic, professional, and everyday contexts when highlighting key information, rules, responsibilities, or values.

This verb typically appears before its object (e.g., 强调重点), often followed by 把 or 在...上 to indicate what is being emphasized. It can also be used reflexively with 了 to mark completed emphasis (e.g., 他强调了三点). Unlike the English 'emphasize', 强调 rarely takes a direct object without a particle or prepositional phrase in formal usage, and it is not used for physical emphasis (e.g., stressing a syllable) — for that, use 重读 (zhòngdú).