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叛逆 (pàn nì) — (verb) to rebel, to be rebellious (often in a developmental or social context); (noun) rebellion, rebelliousness; a rebel

Definition

Rebellious defiance, usually in adolescents. Lighter and more personal than 反抗 (active resistance) or 革命 (political revolution).

verb
to rebelto be rebellious (often in a developmental or social context)
noun
rebellionrebelliousnessa rebel

Examples

  • 叛逆。
    Hěn duō hái zi zài qīng chūn qī dōu huì jīng lì pàn nì jiē duàn.
    Many children go through a rebellious phase during adolescence.
  • 叛逆。
    Tā de pàn nì xìng gé ràng jiā rén hěn dān xīn.
    His rebellious personality worries his family a lot.
  • 叛逆，。
    pàn nì Bú shì huài shì, guān jiàn shì yǐn dǎo.
    Rebellion isn't necessarily bad; the key is guidance.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

叛pànrebel
逆nìdisobey

叛 and 逆 both suggest turning against, forming the idea of rebellion or a rebel.

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
反反fǎn
Sound part声符shēngfú
半
半bàn叛pàn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

叛 pairs 反 as its meaning part with 半 as its sound part.

Open 叛 →

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

  • 辶辵chuòmovement
  • 屰屰nìgo against

The 辶 part shows movement, and 屰 gives the sound and the sense of going against, so the whole depicts moving in the opposite direction.

Open 逆 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Conflict & Agreement

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