勾当 (gòu dàng) — shady deal, dishonest business | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

勾当 (gòudang) names an underhand or illegal activity — the kind of dirty dealings done behind closed doors. Almost always used with a negative modifier (非法, 不法, 违法).

noun

shady dealdishonest business

Examples

勾当。
Tā zuò le hěn duō bù guāng cǎi de gòu dàng.
He did a lot of dishonorable shady deals.
勾当。
Zhè xiē gòu dàng dōu shì wéi fǎ de.
These shady deals are all illegal.
勾当。
Tā yīn wèi cān yù fēi fǎ gòu dàng bèi bǔ le.
He was arrested for participating in illegal shady deals.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

勾 and 当 both suggest handling or managing, so together they name an affair, often a shady one.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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 當; 当 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

田田tiánfield

Sound part声符shēngfú

尚

尚shàng當dāng

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 當 combines 田 (field) with 尚; the evidence describes fields facing each other.

Appears in

Business & Commerce Crime & Police

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.