牛气 (niú qì) — (colloquial, of a person) arrogant, haughty, overbearing; (economics, of a market) bullish

Definition

Colloquial adjective meaning 'arrogant / overbearing' (about a person) or 'bullish' (about a market). The figurative market sense plays on 牛 = bull, so a 牛市 (bull market) is 牛气.

adjective
(colloquial, of a person) arroganthaughtyoverbearing(economics, of a market) bullish

Examples

  • 牛气，。
    Tā zhè ge rén hěn niú qì, shuí de huà dōu bù tīng.
    He's very arrogant — he doesn't listen to anyone.
  • 牛气，。
    Zuì jìn gǔ shì hěn niú qì, zhǐ shù yì zhí zài zhǎng.
    The stock market has been bullish lately; the index keeps rising.
  • 牛气，。
    Bié nà me niú qì, qiān xū yì diǎn.
    Don't be so overbearing — be a little humble.

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.

牛niúcow
气qìair

牛气 pairs 牛 and 气 to mean a haughty or bullish air.

Characters in this word

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

牛 is drawn as a bull's head, with two horns and two ears.

Open 牛 →

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 →

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