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翩翩起舞 (piān piān qǐ wǔ) — to dance gracefully and lightly; to dance elegantly

Definition

A literary, onomatopoetic-style verb meaning to dance lightly and gracefully — the reduplication 翩翩 evokes fluttering movement, so it suits butterflies, willows, or a dancer on stage rather than plain everyday dancing.

verb
to dance gracefully and lightlyto dance elegantly

Examples

  • 翩翩起舞。
    Hú dié zài huā cóng zhōng piān piān qǐ wǔ.
    Butterflies are dancing gracefully among the flowers.
  • ，翩翩起舞，。
    Wǔ tái shàng, tā piān piān qǐ wǔ, yíng dé le guān zhòng de zhǎng shēng.
    On stage, she danced gracefully and won the audience's applause.
  • ，翩翩起舞。
    Wēi fēng zhōng, liǔ zhī suí fēng piān piān qǐ wǔ.
    In the breeze, the willow branches dance lightly with the wind.

Origin

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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
走走zǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
巳
巳sì起qǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

起 is made from 走 and 巳: 走 is the part connected with walking or running, and 巳 gives the sound.

Open 起 →

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
舛舛chuǎnsteps, feet in convergent direction
Sound part声符shēngfú
無
無wú舞wǔ
Same sound today

舞 combines 舛, showing feet in converging steps, with 無 above. 無 gave the sound and also preserved its older meaning of dancing, so the shape points to dancing.

Open 舞 →
Appears in
Dance & PerformanceIdioms & Set Phrases

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