骗局 (piàn jú) — fraud; hoax | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

骗局 (piànjú) is a noun for a deliberate scheme to deceive people — typically a scam, swindle, or con — rather than a single false claim. The measure word 场 (chǎng) is used for an instance of such a scheme.

noun

fraudhoax

Measure word · 场

Examples

骗局。
Zhè ge piàn jú bèi jǐng chá fā xiàn le.
This fraud was discovered by the police.
骗局。
Tā men shè xià le yí gè piàn jú.
They set up a hoax.
骗局。
Zhè shì yì chǎng jīng xīn cè huà de piàn jú.
This is an elaborately planned fraud.

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.

骗piàncheat

局júsetup

骗 (cheat) and 局 (setup) combine to mean a swindle.

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 騙; 骗 is its simplified writing.

馬扁騙

Meaning part形符xíngfú

馬馬mǎhorse

Sound part声符shēngfú

扁

扁biǎn騙piàn

Same sound today

The traditional form 騙 pairs 馬 (horse) with 扁, which gives the sound; it originally meant to mount a horse by swinging a leg across it. The simplified 骗 is a later abbreviation.

Open 骗 →

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

尸尸shī

Sound part声符shēngfú

句

句jù局jú

Same sound today

The shape of 局 pairs 尸, a meaning part, with 句, a sound part.

Open 局 →

Appears in

Crime & Police