千奇百怪 (qiān qí bǎi guài) — all kinds of strange and bizarre things; a great variety of weird phenomena

Definition

An idiom meaning 'all kinds of strange and bizarre things' — a vivid, four-character set phrase used to describe a great variety of weird phenomena. As a chengyu-style modifier, it typically appears before a noun (的 + noun).

idiom
all kinds of strange and bizarre thingsa great variety of weird phenomena

Examples

  • 千奇百怪。
    Hǎi dǐ shì jiè yǒu qiān qí bǎi guài de shēng wù.
    The underwater world has all kinds of strange creatures.
  • 千奇百怪。
    Zhǎn lǎn huì shàng zhǎn chū le qiān qí bǎi guài de shí tou.
    The exhibition displayed all sorts of bizarre stones.
  • 千奇百怪。
    Hái zi men xǐ huan tīng qiān qí bǎi guài de gù shi.
    Children love to hear all kinds of strange stories.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

千奇thousand strange
千qiānthousand奇qístrange
偏正Modifier + head
百怪hundred weird
百bǎihundred怪guàiweird
偏正Modifier + head

千 and 百 mean thousand and hundred, while 奇 and 怪 mean strange and weird, evoking countless oddities.

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
一一yīone, signifying a number
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén千qiān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

千 pairs 人, whose sound was similar, with 一, a number stroke; the extra line was explained as extension, and a thousand is a number reached by extending counting.

Open 千 →

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
大大dàbig; great
Sound part声符shēngfú
可
可kě奇
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

奇 pairs 大 (big; great) with 可, a sound part.

Open 奇 →

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
一一yī
Sound part声符shēngfú
白
白bái百bǎi
Same sound today

百 combines 一, which carries the number meaning, with 白, which provides the sound.

Open 百 →

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xīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
圣
圣shèng怪guài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

怪 is built from 忄, a form of 心, which relates to mind or feeling, and 圣, which gives the sound.

Open 怪 →

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