老皇历 (lǎo huáng lì) — outdated idea, obsolete practice, something that belongs to the past

Definition

A set phrase meaning 'an outdated idea or practice from the past.' Literally 'last year's almanac,' it implies clinging to ways that no longer apply. Similar in flavor to 过时, but used as a noun phrase for the outdated thing itself.

noun
outdated idea, obsolete practice, something that belongs to the past
Easily confused

Examples

  • 老皇历，。
    Nǐ de xiǎng fǎ dōu shì lǎo huáng lì le, xiàn zài méi rén nà me zuò le.
    Your ideas are all outdated — nobody does that anymore.
  • 老皇历，。
    Bié fān lǎo huáng lì le, shí dài zǎo jiù biàn le.
    Don't cling to the old ways — the times have long changed.
  • 老皇历，。
    Tā shuō de nà xiē dōu shì lǎo huáng lì, gēn běn bú shì yòng xiàn zài de qíng kuàng.
    What he said is all outdated — it doesn't apply to the current situation at all.

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.

老lǎoold
皇历imperial calendar
皇huángimperial历lìcalendar
偏正Modifier + head

老 means old, and 皇历 is the imperial calendar; together they suggest an outdated almanac.

Characters in this word

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

The shape 老 combines 人 (man), 毛 (hair), and 匕 (cane), showing a man with long hair leaning on a cane.

Open 老 →

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

The part 𤼽 originally drew a single peacock feather; 王 was later added to give the sound.

Open 皇 →

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 歷; 历 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 历 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (简历, 经历) it is 歷; in others (日历) it is 曆.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
止止zhǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
厤
厤lì歷lì
Same sound today

The form 歷 pairs 止 with the sound part 厤.

Open 历 →

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