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尊贵 (zūn guì) — respected and honorable; distinguished; noble

Definition

尊贵 emphasizes high status and the honor others show toward it — like an honored guest or noble family. 高贵 leans more toward innate character or refinement; 尊敬 is the verb 'to respect' someone.

adjective
respected and honorabledistinguishednoble

Examples

  • 尊贵。
    Zhè wèi zūn guì de nǚ shì shì wǒ men gōng sī de zhòng yào hé zuò huǒ bàn.
    This distinguished lady is an important partner of our company.
  • 尊贵。
    Tā chū shēng zài yí gè zūn guì de jiā tíng.
    He was born into a noble family.
  • 尊贵。
    Zǒng tǒng xiàng zūn guì de lái bīn men biǎo shì rè liè huān yíng.
    The president extended a warm welcome to the honored guests.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

尊zūnhonor
贵guìnoble

尊 conveys honor, 贵 conveys nobility; together they mean respected and noble.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The shape combines 寸 (hand) and 酋 (wine), showing a hand offering a wine vessel to express respect; some forms show two hands instead.

Open 尊 →

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 貴; 贵 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèimoney cowrie
Sound part声符shēngfú
臾
臾yú貴guì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 貴 uses 貝, a money cowrie, for meaning and 臾 for sound. The simplified 贵 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the old parts.

Open 贵 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Personality & TraitsGood & Bad

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