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了不起 (liǎo bu qǐ) — amazing; terrific; extraordinary

Definition

Colloquial praise for someone or something impressive — ‘amazing, terrific.’ More everyday and exclamatory than 特殊 (‘unusual’) or 非凡 (‘extraordinary,’ formal/written).

adjective
amazingterrificextraordinary

Examples

  • 了不起。
    Tā de chéng jiù fēi cháng liǎo bu qǐ.
    His achievements are truly amazing.
  • 了不起。
    Zhè méi shén me liǎo bu qǐ de.
    This is nothing special.
  • 了不起。
    Dà jiā dōu jué de zhè bù diàn yǐng hěn liǎo bu qǐ.
    Everyone thinks this movie is amazing.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

了liǎofinish
不起cannot rise or bear
不bùnot起qǐrise
偏正Modifier + head

了 conveys 'finish' and 不起 conveys 'not able to rise or bear'; the idea is something too great to be finished with, hence amazing.

Characters in this word

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

了 was once drawn to show a baby with no arms; some old comments say it showed crossed or tangled legs.

Open 了 →

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

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

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
走走zǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
巳
巳sì起qǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

起 is made from 走 and 巳: 走 is the part connected with walking or running, and 巳 gives the sound.

Open 起 →
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