侮蔑 (wǔ miè) — to insult; to look down upon

Definition

侮蔑 (wǔmiè) is a strong, written verb meaning to humiliate or treat with contempt. It is more forceful and literary than everyday 看不起 ('look down on').

verb
to insultto look down upon

Examples

  • 侮蔑，。
    Tā gōng kāi wǔ miè duì shǒu, yǐn qǐ le gōng fèn.
    He publicly insulted his opponent, arousing public outrage.
  • 侮蔑，。
    Bú yào yòng zhè zhǒng yǔ qì wǔ miè bié rén, hěn bù zūn zhòng.
    Don't use this kind of tone to look down on others; it's very disrespectful.
  • 侮蔑，。
    Tā gǎn dào bèi rén wǔ miè le, xīn lǐ fēi cháng wěi qu.
    He felt insulted by others and was very aggrieved inside.

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.

侮wǔinsult
蔑mièslight

侮蔑 joins 侮 (insult) and 蔑 (slight), both expressing contempt.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
人人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
每
每měi侮wǔ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

侮 pairs 人, a person, with 每 as a sound component; the person part shows the meaning concerns a person.

Open 侮 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 𦰋𦰋𦰋person
  • 戈戈gēdagger-axe

蔑 combines 𦰋, a person, with 戈, a dagger-axe, to picture a weapon striking a person's lower leg, meaning to obliterate.

Open 蔑 →

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