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领教 (lǐng jiāo) — (polite, formal) thanks for your advice; much obliged; (often sarcastic) to get a taste of; to experience (something unpleasant or someone's tricks)

Definition

领教 (lǐngjiào) is a polite, slightly literary idiom used both to thank someone for advice ("much obliged") and, often sarcastically, to say you've "had the pleasure" of someone's nasty side. Two opposite tones share one phrase — listen to context.

idiom
(polite, formal) thanks for your advicemuch obliged(often sarcastic) to get a taste ofto experience (something unpleasant or someone's tricks)

Examples

  • ，领教！
    Nín shuō dé tài hǎo le, lǐng jiāo le!
    You put it so well – much obliged!
  • 领教。
    Zhè cì wǒ kě lǐng jiāo le tā de lì hài.
    This time I got a real taste of his ferocity.
  • 领教，。
    Jīn rì qián lái lǐng jiāo, hái qǐng zhǐ jiào.
    I've come today to seek your advice – please enlighten me.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

领lǐngreceive
教jiàoteaching

领 means receive and 教 means teaching, giving the sense of receiving instruction.

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 領; 领 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yè
Sound part声符shēngfú
令
令lìng領lǐng
Same sound today

The traditional form 領 has 令 as a sound part and 頁 as a meaning part; the simplified 领 is a later shorthand.

Open 领 →

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
子子zǐchild
攵Written in full as攴pūteaching cane; stick that represents authority
Sound part声符shēngfú
爻
爻yáo教jiào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

教 uses 爻 for its sound and puts 子 (child) with 攵 (攴), a teaching cane, to show teaching a child.

Open 教 →
Appears in
Greetings & Politeness

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