斗胆 (dǒu dǎn) — (humble expression) to take the liberty of, to be so bold as to

Definition

斗胆 (dǒudǎn) is a humble, formal set phrase meaning 'to take the liberty of' or 'venture to' — used in writing or very polite speech to soften a bold request.

verb
(humble expression) to take the liberty ofto be so bold as to

Examples

  • 斗胆，？
    Wǒ dǒu dǎn wèn yí jù, nín guì xìng?
    May I venture to ask, what is your esteemed surname?
  • 斗胆。
    dǒu dǎn Qǐng nín fā biǎo yì xiē yì jiàn.
    I take the liberty of asking you to share some opinions.
  • 斗胆，。
    Zài xià dǒu dǎn shuō yí jù, zhè ge fāng àn kě néng yǒu wèn tí.
    I humbly venture to say that this plan may have issues.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

斗dòuventure
胆dǎncourage

斗 suggests venturing or contending, and 胆 stands for courage; together they mean to dare.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 斗 originally showed a ladle-shaped dipper or cup used to measure grain, held in a hand.

Open 斗 →

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ròubody part
Sound part声符shēngfú
旦
旦dàn胆dǎn
Same sound today

胆 combines ⺼, written as 肉 when full, for a body part, with 旦 as a sound part.

Open 胆 →

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