懦弱 (nuò ruò) — cowardly, weak (in character)

Definition

adjective

cowardlyweak (in character)

懦弱，。
Tā xìng gé nuò ruò, yù dào kùn nan zǒng xiǎng táo bì.
He has a cowardly personality and always wants to run away when facing difficulties.
懦弱。
Bú yào yīn wèi nuò ruò ér fàng qì nǐ de lǐ xiǎng.
Don't give up on your ideals out of weakness.
懦弱，。
Tā jué de zì jǐ tài nuò ruò le, jué dìng yào gǎi biàn.
He felt he was too cowardly and decided to change.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

懦nuòweak

懦 and 弱 both describe weakness, so together they mean cowardly and weak.

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.

忄需懦

Meaning part形符xíngfú

忄Written in full as心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

需

需xū懦nuò

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

The left side 忄 is a heart; the right side 需 gives the sound.

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

弱 pairs 弓 (bow) with 彡 (hair), showing a decorative bow that is functionally inferior, or a shaking, worn-out bow.

Appears in