落马 (luò mǎ) — to fall from power / be caught (in corruption cases); to be eliminated (in a competition)

Definition

An idiom meaning 'to fall from power' — used almost exclusively for officials caught in corruption. In a competition context it means being eliminated, but that's the less common sense.

verb
to fall from power / be caught (in corruption cases)to be eliminated (in a competition)

Examples

  • 。
    Tā zài dì yī lún jiù luò le mǎ.
    He was eliminated in the first round.
  • 落马。
    Nà ge shì zhǎng yīn wèi shòu huì luò mǎ le.
    That mayor fell from power because of bribery.
  • 落马。
    Duō míng guān yuán bèi diào chá hòu luò mǎ le.
    Many officials were caught after investigation.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

落luòfall
马mǎhorse

落 and 马 literally picture falling from a horse, now meaning being brought down.

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎo
Sound part声符shēngfú
洛
洛luò落luò
Same sound today

落 pairs 艹 with 洛; 洛 gives the sound, and 艹 relates to the meaning.

Open 落 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 馬; 马 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 馬 shows a horse with its head facing left, a flowing mane, and two legs standing vertically.

Open 马 →

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