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死里逃生 (sǐ lǐ táo shēng) — to have a narrow escape; to survive a life-threatening situation

Definition

A dramatic idiom for narrowly escaping death — stronger and more literary than the plain phrase 'narrow escape', often used for dramatic or emotional effect in storytelling.

idiom
to have a narrow escapeto survive a life-threatening situation

Examples

  • 死里逃生，。
    Tā zài nà chǎng chē huò zhōng sǐ lǐ táo shēng, zhēn shì xìng yùn.
    He had a narrow escape in that car accident — really lucky.
  • ，死里逃生。
    Dì zhèn hòu, jiù yuán duì cóng fèi xū zhōng jiù chū sǐ lǐ táo shēng de jū mín.
    After the earthquake, rescue teams pulled residents who had a narrow escape from the rubble.
  • 死里逃生，。
    Zhè bù diàn yǐng jiǎng shù le yí gè sǐ lǐ táo shēng de gù shi, fēi cháng jīng xiǎn.
    This movie tells a story of a narrow escape — very thrilling.

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.

死里inside death
死sǐdeath里lǐinside
偏正Modifier + head
逃生escape to life
逃táoescape生shēnglife
动宾Verb + object

死里 evokes being inside death, while 逃生 means escaping to life, together giving a narrow escape.

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
歹歹dǎi
Sound part声符shēngfú
尸
尸shī死sǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

死 is built from 歹 and 尸: 歹 is the part tied to the meaning, and 尸 gives the sound.

Open 死 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 裡; 里 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 里 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (里, 里面) it is 裡; in others (公里) it is 里 or 裏.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
衤Written in full as衣yīclothes
Sound part声符shēngfú
里
里lǐ裡lǐ
Same sound today

The form 裡 pairs 衤 (clothes) with 里 as a sound component.

Open 里 →

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
辶Written in full as辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
兆
兆zhào逃táo
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

逃 pairs 辶 (walk) with 兆, which gives the pronunciation.

Open 逃 →

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

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set PhrasesSafety & Danger

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