大部头 (dà bù tóu) — large, thick book (often multi-volume); important classic work; weighty tome

Definition

A colloquial term for a big, thick book — usually a multi-volume classic or scholarly work. The tone is casual and a bit playful; readers use it to acknowledge the sheer size of the book.

noun
largethick book (often multi-volume)important classic workweighty tome
Measure word · 本

Examples

  • 大部头。
    Zhè běn dà bù tóu wǒ yǐ jīng dú le sān gè yuè hái méi dú wán.
    I've been reading this thick tome for three months and still haven't finished it.
  • 大部头。
    Tú shū guǎn lǐ yǒu hěn duō guān yú lì shǐ de dà bù tóu.
    The library has many multi-volume works on history.
  • 大部头。
    Zhè bù dà bù tóu shì yán jiū zhōng guó gǔ dài wén huà de bì bèi shū mù.
    This weighty work is a must-read for studying ancient Chinese culture.

Origin

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
邑邑yì
Sound part声符shēngfú
咅
咅pǒu部bù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

部 pairs 咅, which gives the sound, with 邑. It originally named a place in today's Gansu.

Open 部 →

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →

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