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大名鼎鼎 (dà míng dǐng dǐng) — renowned, famous, having a great reputation

Definition

A set phrase meaning 'far-famous' — a vivid, emphatic way to say someone or something is extremely well-known. Stronger than 出名 and more literary than 闻名, often used to praise established reputations.

phrase
renownedfamoushaving a great reputation

Examples

  • 大名鼎鼎。
    Tā shì yí wèi dà míng dǐng dǐng de kē xué jiā.
    He is a renowned scientist.
  • 大名鼎鼎。
    Nà shì yí gè dà míng dǐng dǐng de pǐn pái.
    That is a well-known brand.
  • 。
    Nà jiā gōng sī zài háng yè zhōng dà míng dǐng dǐng.
    That company has a great reputation in the industry.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

大名great reputation
大dàgreat名míngname/reputation
偏正Modifier + head
鼎鼎grand/illustrious
鼎dǐnggrand鼎dǐnggrand
重叠Reduplication

大名 means a great name or reputation; 鼎鼎 describes that reputation as grand and illustrious, giving the sense of renowned.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The form 大 is a picture of a person standing and facing forward, not of someone stretching their arms.

Open 大 →

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

名 puts 夕 (crescent moon) above 口 (mouth), showing a name spoken in the dark.

Open 名 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 鼎 is a picture of an ancient bronze tripod cauldron, a vessel with three legs used for cooking or ritual.

Open 鼎 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 鼎 is a picture of an ancient bronze tripod cauldron, a vessel with three legs used for cooking or ritual.

Open 鼎 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9AppearanceIdioms & Set Phrases

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