饱经沧桑 (bǎo jīng cāng sāng) — to have experienced many vicissitudes; to have… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literary phrase for a person or thing that has 'lived through many hardships and changes'. Stronger and more literary than simply saying 经历很多.

phrase

to have experienced many vicissitudesto have been through a lot

Examples

饱经沧桑，。
Zhè wèi bǎo jīng cāng sāng de lǎo rén jiǎng qǐ guò qù de gù shi, ràng rén gǎn dòng.
This elderly person, who has been through many changes, tells stories of the past that move people.
饱经沧桑。
Nà zuò bǎo jīng cāng sāng de gǔ jiàn zhù yī rán yì lì zài fēng yǔ zhōng.
That ancient building, which has weathered many changes, still stands in the wind and rain.
饱经沧桑，。
Zhè ge mín zú bǎo jīng cāng sāng, què shǐ zhōng bǎo chí zhe dú tè de wén huà.
This nation has experienced many vicissitudes, yet has always maintained its unique culture.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

饱经fully experienced

饱bǎofully经jīngexperience

偏正Modifier + head

沧桑vicissitudes

沧cāngsea桑sāngmulberry

联合Coordinate

饱 means fully, 经 means experience, 沧桑 stands for many changes; together they mean having lived through much.

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 飽; 饱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

食食shífood

Sound part声符shēngfú

包

包bāo飽bǎo

Same sound today

The traditional form 飽 uses 食 to mark food/eating and 包 for the sound.

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 經; 经 is its simplified writing.

糹巠經

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糹Written in full as糸mìsilk; thread

Sound part声符shēngfú

巠

巠jīng經jīng

Same sound today

The traditional form 經 combines 糹 (silk; thread) with 巠, which gives the sound.

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 滄; 沧 is its simplified writing.

氵倉滄

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

倉

倉cāng滄cāng

Same sound today

The traditional form 滄 has 氵, a water sign, beside 倉, which gives the sound; the simplified 沧 is a shorthand, and its right side is not the old 倉.

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

桑 is a picture of a mulberry tree, with its upper part drawn as the tree's foliage.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 HSK 2.0 Level 6

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