多劳多得 (duō láo duō dé) — the more work you do, the more you get (a principle of fair compensation)

Definition

A set phrase meaning 'the more you work, the more you earn' — a principle used to justify performance-based pay. Less common in daily speech than concrete verbs like 赚 or 挣, and almost always appears in discussions of workplace policy.

verb
the more work you dothe more you get (a principle of fair compensation)

Examples

  • 多劳多得，。
    Gōng sī shí xíng duō láo duō dé de zhì dù, yuán gōng dōu hěn nǔ lì.
    The company implements a 'more work, more pay' system, so employees all work hard.
  • 多劳多得。
    duō láo duō dé Shì shè huì zhǔ yì fēn pèi de jī běn yuán zé zhī yī.
    More work, more pay is one of the basic principles of socialist distribution.
  • 多劳多得。
    Zhè ge xiàng mù àn duō láo duō dé de fāng shì jì suàn jiǎng jīn.
    This project calculates bonuses based on the principle of more work, more pay.

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.

多劳work more
多duōmore劳láowork
偏正Modifier + head
多得get more
多duōmore得déobtain
偏正Modifier + head

多劳 pairs more work, and 多得 pairs more reward; together they state a fair exchange.

Characters in this word

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

多 originally showed two pieces of meat placed together; the repeated meat shape gives the sense of many.

Open 多 →

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 勞; 劳 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
力力lì
Sound part声符shēngfú
𬡤
𬡤𬡤勞láo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 勞 uses 力 for the meaning and 𬡤 for the sound; the simplified 劳 is a later shortened shape.

Open 劳 →

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

多 originally showed two pieces of meat placed together; the repeated meat shape gives the sense of many.

Open 多 →

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

The old form 㝵 showed a hand picking up a cowry, meaning to obtain; later changes turned that picture into 得.

Open 得 →

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