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毫发 (háo fà) — the slightest bit; a hair's breadth (used in negative constructions)

Definition

Literary measure of a hair's breadth, used almost only in negatives (毫不, 毫发无损) to mean 'not in the slightest'. It is a fixed, written-style intensifier, not a literal body part.

noun
the slightest bita hair's breadth (used in negative constructions)

Examples

  • ，毫发。
    Jīng guò zhè cì shì gù, tā háo fà wú sǔn.
    After this accident, he was not harmed in the slightest.
  • 毫发，。
    Liǎng fú huà háo fà bú chà, wán quán yí yàng.
    The two paintings are exactly the same, not differing by a hair.
  • ，毫发。
    Tā cóng xuán yá shàng diào xià lái, jìng rán háo fà wèi shāng.
    He fell off the cliff but surprisingly wasn't hurt at all.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

毫háofine hair
发fāhair

Tiny hairs: 毫 and 发 both mean hair, extended to the slightest bit.

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.

The written form 毫 is built from 高 and 毛.

Open 毫 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 發; 发 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 发 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (爆发, 出发) it is 發; in others (理发, 头发) it is 髮.

The form 發, which 发 stands for in many words, was originally drawn as a bow firing an arrow.

Open 发 →
Appears in
Body Parts

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