TongTong
Sign in

桃色 (táo sè) — pink (the color); related to illicit love, romance, or sexual scandals (often in news or gossip)

Definition

Literally 'peach color' (a shade of pink), but in modern news/journalism 桃色事件 is the standard term for sex or romance scandals. Use the color meaning literally; use the scandal meaning in news/gossip contexts.

noun
pink (the color)related to illicit loveromanceor sexual scandals (often in news or gossip)

Examples

  • 桃色。
    Tā jīn tiān chuān le yí jiàn táo sè de wài tào.
    She wore a pink coat today.
  • 桃色。
    Nà zé táo sè xīn wén yǐn fā le shè huì guān zhù.
    That sex scandal story drew public attention.
  • 桃色。
    Zhè jiā zá zhì zuì xǐ huan bào dào táo sè shì jiàn.
    This magazine loves reporting love scandals.

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.

桃táopeach
色sècolor

桃 names the peach and 色 names color, so it denotes a peach-pink shade and figurative romance scandals.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
兆
兆zhào桃táo(r)
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

桃 combines 木, meaning tree, with 兆, which gives the sound.

Open 桃 →

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

  • 爪爪zhuǎclaw; hand
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

色 pairs 爪 (a hand) with 卩 (a kneeling person), showing a hand pressing down on the kneeling person.

Open 色 →
Appears in
ColorsRomance & Marriage

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.