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大红大紫 (dà hóng dà zǐ) — to be very popular; to be in the spotlight; to be at the height of one's fame

Definition

Idiom for a person (usually in entertainment) who is extremely popular and at the peak of fame. Pairs with people, not objects or ideas.

idiom
to be very popularto be in the spotlightto be at the height of one's fame

Examples

  • 大红大紫。
    Tā qù nián yǎn le yí bù diàn yǐng zhī hòu jiù dà hóng dà zǐ le.
    After he acted in a movie last year, he became extremely popular.
  • 大红大紫，。
    Zhè wèi gē shǒu xiàn zài dà hóng dà zǐ, dào chù dōu yǒu tā de fěn sī.
    This singer is at the height of her fame now; her fans are everywhere.
  • 大红大紫，，。
    Yí gè yǎn yuán yào xiǎng dà hóng dà zǐ, bù jǐn xū yào shí lì, hái xū yào yùn qì.
    If an actor wants to become extremely popular, they need not only skill but also luck.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

大红deep red
大dàdeep红hóngred
偏正Modifier + head
大紫deep purple
大dàdeep紫zǐpurple
偏正Modifier + head

大红 and 大紫, deep red and deep purple, are joined to suggest vivid popularity.

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 →

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 紅; 红 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng紅hóng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 紅 puts 糸 (silk) next to 工, which gives the sound; the simplified 红 is a later shorthand.

Open 红 →

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 →

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
糸糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
此
此cǐ紫zǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

紫 is made of 糸, a silk-related part, and 此, which gives the sound cǐ.

Open 紫 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set PhrasesSuccess & Failure

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