公敌 (gōng dí) — public enemy | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A compound of 公 ('public') + 敌 ('enemy'): someone or something widely opposed by a whole group — not just personal foes. Used literally (criminals, pests) and rhetorically (sports, politics).

noun

public enemy

Measure word · 个

Examples

公敌。
Zhè ge zuì fàn chéng le shè huì de gōng dí.
This criminal became a public enemy of society.
，公敌。
Zài qiú chǎng shàng, duì fāng qiú duì shì wǒ men de gōng dí.
On the court, the opposing team is our public enemy.
公敌。
Zhè zhǒng hài chóng shì nóng mín de gōng dí.
This kind of pest is a public enemy for farmers.

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.

公 means public and 敌 means enemy, so 公敌 is an enemy of the public.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

One theory sees 公 as a picture of a wide-mouthed, round-bottomed jar.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 敵; 敌 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

攴攴pūto tap; to hit

Sound part声符shēngfú

啻

啻chì敵dí

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 敵 pairs 啻 as a sound part with 攴, a part for tapping or hitting.

Appears in

Society & Public Life

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