独断 (dú duàn) — arbitrary, dictatorial, dogmatic (acting on one…

Definition

adjective

arbitrarydictatorialdogmatic (acting on one's own opinion without consulting others)

独断。
Tā nà zhǒng dú duàn de zuò fǎ yǐn qǐ le dà jiā de bù mǎn.
His arbitrary way of doing things caused everyone's dissatisfaction.
独断，。
Lǐng dǎo zhě bù yīng dú duàn, ér xū tīng qǔ duō fāng yì jiàn.
Leaders should not be dictatorial; they need to listen to opinions from many sides.
独断。
Zhè zhǒng dú duàn de pàn duàn wǎng wǎng huì dǎo zhì cuò wù jué cè.
This kind of dogmatic judgment often leads to wrong decisions.

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.

独 (alone) shows how one 断 (decides), giving the sense of deciding without consulting others.

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 獨; 独 is its simplified writing.

犭蜀獨

Meaning part形符xíngfú

犭Written in full as犬quǎn

Sound part声符shēngfú

蜀

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 獨 pairs 犬 (dog) with 蜀, which gives the sound; the simplified 独 is a shorthand.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 斷; 断 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 斷 uses 𢇍 (to cut) and 斤 (axe) together.

Appears in