TongTong
Sign in

傲慢 (ào màn) — arrogant, haughty

Definition

Arrogant and haughty — a purely negative, dismissive attitude toward others. Unlike 骄傲, it has no positive 'pride' sense; 高傲 is a close near-synonym, but 傲慢 sounds more contemptuous.

adjective
arroganthaughty

Examples

  • 傲慢。
    Tā nà zhǒng ào màn de tài dù ràng rén hěn bù shū fu.
    His arrogant attitude makes people very uncomfortable.
  • ，傲慢。
    Jí shǐ chéng gōng le, yě bú yào biàn de ào màn.
    Even if you succeed, don't become arrogant.
  • 傲慢。
    Tā shuō huà shí zǒng shì dài zhe yì sī ào màn.
    She always speaks with a hint of arrogance.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

傲àoarrogant
慢màninsolent

傲 'arrogant' and 慢 'insolent' are parallel, giving haughty.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
人人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
敖
敖áo傲ào
Same sound today

傲 combines 人, meaning person, with 敖, which gives the sound.

Open 傲 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
忄Written in full as心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
曼
曼màn慢màn
Same sound today

慢 pairs 忄 (heart) with 曼 (màn). The heart part points to a manner or sluggish behavior, while 曼’s meaning “long, extended” adds the sense of taking a long time.

Open 慢 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Personality & Traits

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.