大红人 (dà hóng rén) — (colloquial) a very popular or influential person; a favorite

Definition

A colloquial noun for someone who is suddenly very popular and in everyone's good graces — a 'big favorite'. It implies current buzz and influence, not lasting fame.

noun
(colloquial) a very popular or influential persona favorite
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 大红人，。
    Tā xiàn zài shì gōng sī de dà hóng rén, lǎo bǎn tè bié kàn zhòng tā.
    He is now the company's favorite; the boss values him a lot.
  • ，大红人。
    Zì cóng huò jiǎng hòu, tā chéng le yú lè quān de dà hóng rén.
    Since winning the award, she has become a big name in the entertainment circle.
  • 大红人，。
    Tā shì lǐng dǎo miàn qián de dà hóng rén, dà jiā dōu xiǎng tǎo hǎo tā.
    He is a favorite in front of the leaders; everyone wants to please him.

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.

大dàvery
红人popular person
红hóngpopular人rénperson
偏正Modifier + head

大 means very, 红 suggests popularity, and 人 means person, so a very popular person.

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 →

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 紅; 红 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng紅hóng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 紅 puts 糸 (silk) next to 工, which gives the sound; the simplified 红 is a later shorthand.

Open 红 →

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

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →

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