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大腕 (dà wàn) — big shot, celebrity, star (figurative)

Definition

大腕 (dàwàn) is a colloquial term for a top celebrity or influential big shot in a field — implies real authority, not just fame. The reading here is dàwàn, not dàwàn 'big wrist'.

noun
big shotcelebritystar (figurative)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 大腕，。
    Tā shì yí wèi diàn yǐng dà wàn, yǎn guò hěn duō jīng diǎn jué sè.
    He is a movie star who has played many classic roles.
  • 大腕。
    Zhè cì huó dòng qǐng lái le jǐ wèi shāng jiè dà wàn.
    This event invited several business big shots.
  • ，大腕。
    Zài tǐ yù jiè, tā yǐ jīng shì gōng rèn de dà wàn le.
    In the sports world, he is already a recognized big shot.

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dàbig
腕wànwrist

大 means big, and 腕, literally wrist, is used figuratively for power or skill, so the word denotes a big shot.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⺼Written in full as肉ròumeat, body part
Sound part声符shēngfú
宛
宛wǎn腕wàn
Same sound today

腕 pairs ⺼ (meat/body part) with 宛, which gives the sound; the ⺼ part marks it as a body part.

Open 腕 →
Appears in
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