气魄 (qì pò) — boldness of spirit, audacity, imposing manner

Definition

气魄 is the awe-inspiring grandeur or daring spirit of a person, building, or work — a sense of scale and force, not just bravery (that is 胆量). Compare 气势 (powerful momentum) and 魄力 (decisive action).

noun
boldness of spiritaudacityimposing manner

Examples

  • 气魄,。
    Tā shì yí wèi yǒu qì pò de zhèng zhì jiā, gǎn yú tuī xíng gǎi gé.
    He is a politician with boldness, daring to push reforms.
  • 气魄,。
    Zhè zuò jiàn zhù de shè jì chōng mǎn le qì pò, lìng rén zhèn hàn.
    The design of this building is full of grandeur, stunning people.
  • ,气魄。
    Miàn duì kùn nan, tā zhǎn xiàn chū fēi fán de qì pò.
    Facing difficulties, he displayed extraordinary boldness.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

气qìspirit
魄pòsoul, nerve

气 'spirit' and 魄 'soul, nerve' combine to suggest boldness.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 氣; 气 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
米米mǐrice
Sound part声符shēngfú
气
气qì氣qì
Same sound today

The traditional form 氣 pairs 米 (rice) with 气, which supplies the sound; the simplified 气 is a later abbreviation.

Open 气 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 魄 →

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