怪胎 (guài tāi) — freak, weirdo, oddball | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A 怪胎 is a 'freak' or 'oddball' — a person seen as strange or wildly unusual, often in a way that sets them apart from others. The tone is judgment-laden and informal, stronger than just 'different' (跟别人不一样).

noun

freakweirdooddball

Measure word · 个

Examples

怪胎，。
Dà jiā dōu jué de tā shì gè guài tāi, yīn wèi tā zǒng shì yí gè rén zì yán zì yǔ.
Everyone thinks he's a freak because he's always talking to himself.
怪胎，。
Bié jiào tā guài tāi, tā zhǐ shì xiǎng fǎ gēn bié rén bù yí yàng ér yǐ.
Don't call him a freak — he just thinks differently from others.
怪胎，。
Zài shù xué fāng miàn tā shì gè guài tāi, shí suì jiù néng jiě dà xué tí mù.
He's a freak in math — he could solve college-level problems at age ten.

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.

怪guàistrange

“怪” means strange and “胎” means fetus; together they picture a freakish person.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

忄圣怪

Meaning part形符xíngfú

忄Written in full as心xīn

Sound part声符shēngfú

圣

圣shèng怪guài

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

怪 is built from 忄, a form of 心, which relates to mind or feeling, and 圣, which gives the sound.

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

⺼Written in full as肉ròu

Sound part声符shēngfú

台

台tái胎tāi

Same sound today

胎 is formed from ⺼ (written in full as 肉) and 台, which gives the sound.

Appears in

People (General)

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