博弈 (bó yì) — to play games (such as chess, Go, etc.); to gam…

Definition

Lit. 'play a board game,' now used for strategic contests (companies, parties, rivals). 对弈 stays for actual board play; 赌/赌博 focus on staking money.

verb

to play games (such as chess, Go, etc.)to gamble

博弈。
Tā men jīng cháng yì qǐ bó yì.
They often play games together.
博弈，。
Tā zài dǔ chǎng bó yì, shū le hěn duō qián.
He gambled at the casino and lost a lot of money.
博弈。
Liǎng jiā gōng sī zhèng zài shì chǎng shàng bó yì.
The two companies are competing in the market.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

博bógame/gambling

弈yìchess/Go

博 and 弈 are two kinds of games, so playing or gambling is meant.

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.

十尃博

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

尃

尃fū博

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The shape comes from combining 十 (ten) with 尃; 尃 gives the sound.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Appears in