绝活 (jué huó) — unique or unrivaled skill; special technique

Definition

noun
unique or unrivaled skillspecial technique
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 绝活，。
    Tā de shū fǎ zhēn shì jué huó, wú rén néng bǐ.
    His calligraphy is truly a unique skill; no one can match it.
  • 绝活，。
    Zhè wèi chú shī yǒu yí gè jué huó, shì zǔ chuán de mì fāng.
    This chef has a special technique; it's a family recipe passed down.
  • 绝活。
    Tā kào zhe yì shǒu jué huó zài bǐ sài zhōng huò shèng.
    He relied on a unique skill to win the competition.

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.

绝juéunique
活huóskill

'绝' as unique and '活' as skill combine to mean a unique technique.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 絕; 绝 is its simplified writing.

In the traditional form 絕, 刀 (knife) and 幺 (silk) show a knife cutting silk threads. The simplified 绝 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original picture.

Open 绝 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠯑
𠯑𠯑活huó
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

活 is built from 氵 (water) and 𠯑, which shows the sound; 𠯑 later changed into 舌.

Open 活 →

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