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倒彩 (dào cǎi) — booing, jeering, catcalls (from an audience to show disapproval); (in opera) a coordinated jeer when a performer makes a mistake

Definition

倒彩 (dào cǎi) is a coordinated, audience-driven jeer or boo — especially the traditional practice in Chinese opera where a crowd catcalls a performer who slips up. It is not casual one-person grumbling but a collective audible judgment.

noun
booingjeeringcatcalls (from an audience to show disapproval)(in opera) a coordinated jeer when a performer makes a mistake

Examples

  • 倒彩。
    Guān zhòng duì yǎn yuán de shī wù bào yǐ yí piàn dào cǎi.
    The audience responded to the actor's mistake with a wave of booing.
  • ，倒彩。
    Tā zài tái shàng chàng pò le yí gè yīn, dùn shí dào cǎi sì qǐ.
    He cracked a note on stage, and immediately catcalls arose from all sides.
  • 倒彩。
    Jīng jù lǎo guān zhòng yǒu shí huì yòng dào cǎi lái kǎo yàn yǎn yuán de xīn lǐ sù zhì.
    Veteran Beijing opera audiences sometimes use booing to test performers' mental toughness.

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.

倒dǎoopposite/reversing
彩cǎiapplause

倒 means opposite or reversing, and 彩 is applause; together it names applause turned into booing.

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
亻Written in full as人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
到
到dào倒dào
Same sound today

倒 combines 亻 (person) with 到, which gives the sound.

Open 倒 →

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
彡彡shān
Sound part声符shēngfú
采
采cǎi彩cǎi
Same sound today

彩 puts 采, which gives the sound, next to 彡, the three-stroke mark that carries the meaning.

Open 彩 →
Appears in
Emotions & FeelingsFilm & Theater

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