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托词 (tuō cí) — pretext, excuse

Definition

托词 (tuō cí) is a formal, written word for an excuse or pretext — often one used to dodge blame. Colloquial speech more often uses 借口 (jièkǒu, HSK 5).

noun
pretextexcuse

Examples

  • 托词。
    Tā zhǎo le yí gè tuō cí bú qù kāi huì.
    He found a pretext not to go to the meeting.
  • 托词。
    Zhè xiē tuō cí tīng qǐ lái hěn miǎn qiǎng.
    These excuses sound very forced.
  • 托词。
    Bú yào yòng tuō cí lái táo bì zé rèn.
    Don't use pretexts to evade responsibility.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

托tuōborrow/feign
词cíwords

'托' (to borrow/feign) and '词' (words) combine to mean using words as a pretext.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
乇
乇tuō托tuō
Same sound today

托 is built from 手 (hand) and 乇, which gives the sound tuō.

Open 托 →

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 詞; 词 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech
Sound part声符shēngfú
司
司sī詞cí(r)
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 詞 uses 言, meaning speech, and 司 to show how it was pronounced; the simplified 词 is a shorthand, and its right side is not the historical sound part.

Open 词 →
Appears in
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