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敲诈勒索 (qiāo zhà lè suǒ) — to extort; to blackmail; racketeering (as a crime)

Definition

idiom
to extortto blackmailracketeering (as a crime)

Examples

  • 敲诈勒索。
    Zhè ge tuán huǒ zhuān mén cóng shì qiāo zhà lè suǒ.
    This gang specializes in extortion.
  • 敲诈勒索。
    Tā yīn qiāo zhà lè suǒ bèi pàn chǔ wǔ nián yǒu qī tú xíng.
    He was sentenced to five years in prison for extortion.
  • 敲诈勒索。
    Jǐng fāng pò huò le qiāo zhà lè suǒ àn jiàn.
    The police cracked an extortion case.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

敲诈blackmail
敲qiāoknock诈zhàcheat
联合Coordinate
勒索extort
勒lècoerce索suǒdemand
联合Coordinate

敲诈 and 勒索 both describe forceful demands, so together they mean blackmail.

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
攴攴pūto hit lightly; to tap
Sound part声符shēngfú
高
高gāo敲qiāo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

敲 combines 高, which supplies the sound, with 攴, meaning to hit lightly or tap.

Open 敲 →

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 詐; 诈 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
乍
乍zhà詐zhà
Same sound today

The traditional form 詐 shows 言 (speech) plus 乍 as a sound part; the simplified 诈 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical ones.

Open 诈 →

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
革革gé
Sound part声符shēngfú
力
力lì勒lè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

勒 pairs 革 (leather), because bridles are made of leather, with 力, which gives the sound.

Open 勒 →

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

  • 糸糸mìthread
  • 𣎳𣎳𣎳strip fibres off a hemp stalk

索 combines 糸 (thread) and 𣎳 (stripping fibres from a hemp stalk), showing threads or rope being pulled out from a fabric.

Open 索 →
Appears in
Crime & PoliceIdioms & Set Phrases

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