TongTong
Sign in

贵人 (guì rén) — benefactor; person who helps one at a critical moment; (historical) noble person; high official or imperial concubine

Definition

贵人 most often means a 'benefactor' — someone who helps you at a critical moment in life. In historical texts it also refers to a noble or imperial consort.

noun
benefactorperson who helps one at a critical moment(historical) noble personhigh official or imperial concubine
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 贵人，。
    Tā shì wǒ mìng zhòng de guì rén, zài wǒ zuì kùn nan de shí hou bāng le wǒ.
    He is the benefactor in my life; he helped me when I was in the most difficulty.
  • ，贵人。
    Nǐ yào duō jiāo péng you, shuō bú dìng nǎ tiān jiù huì yù dào guì rén.
    You should make more friends; you never know when you might meet a benefactor.
  • ，贵人。
    Zài gǔ dài, huáng hòu cháng bèi chēng wéi guì rén.
    In ancient times, the empress was often called a 'noble person'.

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.

贵guìnoble
人rénperson

贵, 'noble', describes 人, 'person', so it is a noble or helpful person.

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 貴; 贵 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèimoney cowrie
Sound part声符shēngfú
臾
臾yú貴guì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 貴 uses 貝, a money cowrie, for meaning and 臾 for sound. The simplified 贵 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the old parts.

Open 贵 →

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

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →
Appears in
Social Roles & Status

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.