着魔 (zháo mó) — to be obsessed with, to be fascinated by

Definition

Colloquial 'to be obsessed / fascinated,' often used with 一样 or 似的. Stronger and more vivid than the neutral 喜欢.

to be obsessed withto be fascinated by

Examples

  • Tā zì cóng xué le wéi qí yǐ hòu, jiù xiàng zhe le mó yí yàng, tiān tiān yán jiū.
    He's been like a man obsessed since he started learning Go, studying it every day.
  • 着魔
    Tā duì nà bù xiǎo shuō fēi cháng zháo mó, lián xù kàn le sān biàn.
    She's absolutely fascinated by that novel and has read it three times in a row.
  • 着魔
    Dǎ yóu xì róng yì ràng rén zháo mó, yào zhù yì kòng zhì shí jiān.
    Gaming can easily make people obsessed, so you need to control your time.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

zhecatch
demon

着 means to catch or be affected, and 魔 is a demon; together, caught by a demon, obsessed.

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 著; 着 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
zhězháo
Same sound today

The traditional form 著 puts 艸 (grass; plant) above 者, which gives the sound; the simplified 着 is a later shorthand.

Open 着 →

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

魔 pairs 鬼, meaning demon, with 麻, which gives the sound.

Open 魔 →
Appears in

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