TongTong
Sign in

狂妄自大 (kuáng wàng zì dà) — extremely arrogant and conceited

Definition

A strong four-character idiom meaning 'extremely arrogant and conceited' — used for someone who overestimates themselves and ignores others. Carries a stronger, more literary tone than 自大 alone.

idiom
extremely arrogant and conceited

Examples

  • 狂妄自大，。
    Tā zhè ge rén kuáng wàng zì dà, tīng bú jìn rèn hé jiàn yì.
    He is extremely arrogant and can't take any advice.
  • 。
    Kuáng wàng zì dà de lǐng dǎo wǎng wǎng kàn bù qīng zì jǐ de cuò wù.
    An arrogant and conceited leader often fails to see their own mistakes.
  • 狂妄自大。
    Tā yīn wèi kuáng wàng zì dà ér dé zuì le suǒ yǒu tóng shì.
    Because of his arrogance, he offended all his colleagues.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

狂妄mad recklessness
狂kuángmad妄wàngreckless
联合Coordinate
自大self important
自zìself大dàbig
主谓Subject + predicate

狂妄, mad recklessness, and 自大, self important, are combined to describe arrogance.

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
犭Written in full as犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
㞷
㞷㞷狂kuáng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

狂 pairs 犭 (dog) with 㞷, which gives the sound; 㞷 is an old form of a character meaning 'to go'.

Open 狂 →

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
女女nǚwoman
Sound part声符shēngfú
亡
亡wáng妄wàng
Same sound today

妄 combines 亡, which supplies the sound, with 女, a woman.

Open 妄 →

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

自 originally drew a nose. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write 自, so the picture and the meaning are unrelated.

Open 自 →

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

The form 大 is a picture of a person standing and facing forward, not of someone stretching their arms.

Open 大 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set PhrasesPersonality & Traits

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.