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乐得 (lè dé) — be only too glad to; be delighted to (do something)

Definition

乐得 (lè) means 'be only too glad to' — the speaker is happy to do something because it suits them or lets them avoid trouble. It frames the action as a personal bonus, not a duty.

verb
be only too glad tobe delighted to (do something)

Examples

  • 乐得。
    Tā lè dé jiē shòu le zhè ge rèn wu.
    He was only too glad to accept this task.
  • ，乐得。
    Méi rén yuàn yì qù, tā lè dé zì jǐ qù zuò.
    No one was willing to go, so he was only too glad to do it himself.
  • ，乐得。
    Tā bù xí guàn zǎo qǐ, lè dé duō shuì yí huì r.
    She is not used to waking up early, so she is only too glad to sleep a bit longer.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

乐lèglad
得déobtain

The gladness in 乐 shapes 得, giving the sense of being happy to get or do something.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 樂; 乐 is its simplified writing.

In the traditional form 樂, 絲 (string) with 木 (wood) shows strings on a piece of wood, a musical instrument; the simplified 乐 is a later shorthand.

Open 乐 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The old form 㝵 showed a hand picking up a cowry, meaning to obtain; later changes turned that picture into 得.

Open 得 →
Appears in
Emotions & Feelings

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