拘礼 (jū lǐ) — to stand on ceremony, to be overly formal or punctilious

Definition

A verb meaning 'to stand on ceremony' or 'be overly formal with others' — it carries a negative tone, suggesting the formality is unnecessary. Often appears in the pattern 别拘礼 ('don't be so formal').

verb
to stand on ceremony, to be overly formal or punctilious
Easily confused

Examples

  • ，拘礼。
    Dà jiā dōu shì péng you, bú bì jū lǐ.
    We're all friends, no need to stand on ceremony.
  • ，。
    Lái wǒ jiā jiù bié jū shén me lǐ le, suí biàn zuò.
    When you come to my place, don't stand on ceremony — just sit anywhere.
  • 拘礼，。
    Tā zhè ge rén tài jū lǐ, gēn shuí shuō huà dōu kè kè qì qì de.
    He's too formal; he's polite to everyone he talks to.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

拘jūconstrain
礼lǐetiquette

拘 (constrain) and 礼 (etiquette) describe standing on ceremony.

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
扌Written in full as手shǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
句
句jù拘jū
Same sound today

The left part of 拘 is 扌, the hand form written in full as 手; the right part 句 gives the sound jù.

Open 拘 →

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 禮; 礼 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
礻Written in full as示shìaltar
Sound part声符shēngfú
豊
豊lǐ禮lǐ
Same sound today

The traditional form 禮 pairs 礻 (altar) with 豊, a sound part, for performing rites at the altar; the simplified 礼 is a later shorthand.

Open 礼 →

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