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羔羊 (gāo yáng) — lamb (young sheep); (figurative) innocent victim; scapegoat

Definition

羔羊 literally means a lamb (a young sheep), often used figuratively for an innocent, helpless person or a scapegoat. The character 羔 refers specifically to a young lamb, distinguishing it from 羊 (sheep in general).

noun
lamb (young sheep)(figurative) innocent victimscapegoat
Measure word · 只

Examples

  • 羔羊。
    Mù chǎng lǐ yǒu yì zhī gāng chū shēng de xiǎo gāo yáng.
    There is a newborn lamb on the pasture.
  • ，羔羊。
    Zài nà xiē huài rén yǎn lǐ, tā xiàng yì zhī wú gū de gāo yáng.
    In the eyes of those bad people, he is like an innocent lamb.
  • 羔羊。
    Tā chéng le zhè cì shì gù de tì zuì gāo yáng.
    He became the scapegoat for this accident.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

羔gāoyoung sheep
羊yángsheep

The word combines 羔 (young sheep) and 羊 (sheep) to mean a young sheep, often used for an innocent victim.

Characters in this word

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

羔 puts 羊 (sheep/goat) above 灬 (fire), showing a lamb being cooked on a fire.

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

The shape of 羊 comes from a drawing of a ram's head.

Open 羊 →
Appears in
Animals & Mammals

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