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大力神 (dà lì shén) — (proper noun) Heracles (Hercules) in Greek and Roman mythology

Definition

A literal rendering of the Western name 'Heracles / Hercules'. The 三字 name literally means 'great-strength god', used when discussing the Greek hero or a person of extraordinary strength.

noun
(proper noun) Heracles (Hercules) in Greek and Roman mythology

Examples

  • ，大力神。
    Zài gǔ xī là shén huà zhōng, dà lì shén wán chéng le shí èr xiàng jiān jù de rèn wu.
    In ancient Greek mythology, Hercules completed twelve arduous tasks.
  • 大力神，。
    Tā de lì qi dà dé xiàng dà lì shén yí yàng, néng qīng sōng jǔ qǐ zhòng wù.
    His strength is as great as Hercules's — he can easily lift heavy objects.
  • 大力神。
    Zhè bù diàn yǐng jiǎng shù le dà lì shén de yīng xióng gù shi.
    This movie tells the heroic story of Hercules.

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.

大力great strength
大dàgreat力lìstrength
偏正Modifier + head
神shéngod

大 means great, 力 means strength, and 神 means god, so the name pictures a god of great strength.

Characters in this word

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

The form 大 is a picture of a person standing and facing forward, not of someone stretching their arms.

Open 大 →

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

力 is drawn as either an arm bending out from the side of the body or a wooden plough.

Open 力 →

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
示示shìgod; deity
Sound part声符shēngfú
申
申shēn神shén
Same sound today

The older form 申 drew lightning, which the ancients regarded as divine; 神 adds 示 (god/deity) to mark that meaning.

Open 神 →
Appears in
Mythology & Folklore

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