盖世太保 (gài shì tài bǎo) — Gestapo (the Nazi secret police)

Definition

noun

Gestapo (the Nazi secret police)

，盖世太保。
Èr zhàn shí qī, gài shì tài bǎo shì nà cuì de zhǔ yào kǒng bù gōng jù.
During WWII, the Gestapo was the main instrument of Nazi terror.
盖世太保。
Zhè bù xiǎo shuō miáo xiě le yí gè bèi gài shì tài bǎo zhuī bǔ de yóu tài rén.
This novel describes a Jew hunted by the Gestapo.
盖世太保。
Lì shǐ shū shàng xiáng xì jì lù le gài shì tài bǎo de zuì xíng.
History books record the crimes of the Gestapo in detail.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 蓋; 盖 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艸艸cǎograss

Sound part声符shēngfú

盍

盍hé蓋gài

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 蓋 pairs 艸, grass, with 盍 for sound. It was a thatch, and it took on cover meanings after 盍 was borrowed for “why not”.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

太 is a modified form of 大, with an extra dot added to show 'too big'.

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

保 originally showed a person 人 carrying a child 子 on their back, which led to the sense of protecting.

Appears in