TongTong
Sign in

离间 (lí jiān) — to sow discord, to drive a wedge between (people or groups)

Definition

Verb meaning to deliberately drive a wedge between people or groups. Often used in the pattern 离间A和B, and the agent noun is 离间计 (a scheme to sow discord).

verb
to sow discordto drive a wedge between (people or groups)

Examples

  • 离间，。
    Tā gù yì zài liǎng rén zhī jiān lí jiān, xiǎng ràng tā men chǎo jià.
    He deliberately sowed discord between the two people, wanting them to argue.
  • 离间。
    Zhè ge yáo yán jiù shì wèi le lí jiān wǒ men hé hé zuò huǒ bàn de guān xì.
    This rumor is meant to drive a wedge between us and our partners.
  • ，。
    Tā lí guò hǎo jǐ cì jiān, zuì hòu méi rén zài xiāng xìn tā le.
    He has sown discord several times, and in the end no one believed him anymore.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

离líseparate
间jiānput distance between

离 means to separate, and 间 means to put distance between; together they drive people apart.

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 離; 离 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuībird
Sound part声符shēngfú
离
离lí離lí
Same sound today

The traditional form 離 pairs 隹, a bird, with the sound part 离; the simplified 离 is a shorthand. This form first wrote a black-naped oriole, and the sound was borrowed for 'leave'.

Open 离 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 间 →
Appears in
Conflict & Agreement

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.