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武侠 (wǔ xiá) — wuxia genre (martial arts chivalry fiction in literature, film, and theater); knight-errant; chivalrous martial arts hero

Definition

武侠 (wǔxiá) refers to the genre of martial-arts chivalry fiction, or the chivalrous heroes in it. Distinct from 武术, the actual fighting skill itself: 武术 is the martial art, while 武侠 is the literary/cinematic genre built around it.

noun
wuxia genre (martial arts chivalry fiction in literature, film, and theater)knight-errantchivalrous martial arts hero
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 武侠。
    Jīn yōng de wǔ xiá xiǎo shuō zài huá rén shì jiè yǐng xiǎng hěn dà.
    Jin Yong's wuxia novels have a huge influence in the Chinese-speaking world.
  • 武侠，。
    Zhè bù diàn yǐng shì jīng diǎn de wǔ xiá zuò pǐn, zhí dé yí kàn.
    This movie is a classic wuxia work, worth watching.
  • 武侠，。
    Tā cóng xiǎo jiù xiǎng dāng yì míng wǔ xiá, xíng xiá zhàng yì.
    He has wanted to be a knight-errant since childhood, helping the weak and fighting for justice.

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.

武wǔmartial
侠xiáhero

武 means martial and 侠 means hero, so it conveys a martial hero.

Characters in this word

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

武 puts 戈 (dagger-axe) above 止 (foot/to walk), showing an army going on an expedition.

Open 武 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 侠 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6

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