贵贱 (guì jiàn) — the expensive and the cheap; items of all price levels; the noble and the humble; people of all social ranks; (regional, northern) in any case, anyway, no matter what

Definition

A paired noun covering two opposite poles: 'expensive vs. cheap' (things) or 'noble vs. humble' (people, especially in traditional/classical contexts). In northern speech it is also a fixed idiom meaning 'no matter what / in any case' (不论贵贱).

noun
the expensive and the cheapitems of all price levelsthe noble and the humblepeople of all social ranks(regional, northern) in any caseanywayno matter what

Examples

  • 贵贱，。
    Shāng chǎng lǐ de shāng pǐn guì jiàn dōu yǒu, kàn nǐ xuǎn nǎ zhǒng.
    The mall has goods both expensive and cheap — it depends which you choose.
  • ，贵贱。
    Gǔ rén rèn wéi hūn yīn yào jiǎng jiu mén dāng hù duì, bú lùn guì jiàn.
    Ancient people believed marriage should match family status, regardless of high or low rank.
  • 贵贱，。
    Zhè shì guì jiàn dé nǐ qù zuò, bié rén zuò bù liǎo.
    This matter has to be handled by you no matter what — no one else can do it.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

贵guìexpensive/noble
贱jiàncheap/humble

贵 (expensive/noble) and 贱 (cheap/humble) cover all price or rank levels.

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 →

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 賤; 贱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèi
Sound part声符shēngfú
戔
戔jiān賤jiàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 賤 uses 貝 to carry the meaning and 戔 for the sound; the simplified 贱 is a later shorthand.

Open 贱 →

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