宁 (níng) — (adv.) would rather; (adv., literary) could there be; surely not (in rhetorical questions)
Definition
Literary adverb meaning 'would rather' — used in formal/written Chinese, often paired with a negative clause (宁可…也不…). Less common in everyday speech.
adverb
(adv.) would rather(adv., literary) could there besurely not (in rhetorical questions)
Examples
- ，。Wǒ níng kě è sǐ, yě bù chī nà zhǒng dōng xī.I would rather starve to death than eat that kind of thing.
- ，。Tā níng yuàn yí gè rén chéng dān zé rèn, yě bù lián lèi bié rén.He would rather take responsibility alone than implicate others.
- 宁，。níng Wéi yù suì, bù wéi wǎ quán.Better to be a broken piece of jade than a whole tile (idiom: prefer noble failure to ignoble survival).
Origin
Compound ideograph六书liùshū
会意huìyìTwo or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.
This origin belongs to the traditional form 寧; 宁 is its simplified writing.
- 宀宀miánhouse
- 皿皿mǐnfood or wine vessel
- 丂丂kǎotable (?)
Appears in
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