老黄历 (lǎo huáng lì) — outdated thing, obsolete practice, old news; old almanac (traditional Chinese calendar)

Definition

Literally 'old almanac' (the traditional Chinese calendar), now used figuratively to mean an outdated idea, method, or practice that no longer applies. Compare 别翻老黄历 ('don't dig up the old almanac') — i.e., don't rely on outdated information.

noun
outdated thingobsolete practiceold newsold almanac (traditional Chinese calendar)
Measure word · 本
Easily confused

Examples

  • 老黄历，。
    Nǐ de xiǎng fǎ dōu shì lǎo huáng lì le, xiàn zài méi rén nà yàng zuò le.
    Your ideas are all old news — nobody does that anymore.
  • 老黄历，。
    Bié fān lǎo huáng lì le, xiàn zài de qíng kuàng yǐ jīng wán quán bù tóng le.
    Don't consult the old almanac — the situation now is completely different.
  • 老黄历，。
    Zhè tào fāng fǎ zǎo jiù shì lǎo huáng lì le, zǎo gāi gēng xīn le.
    This method is long outdated — it should have been updated long ago.

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.

老lǎoold
黄历traditional almanac
黄huángyellow历lìcalendar
偏正Modifier + head

老 means old, and 黄历 is the traditional almanac; together they suggest outdated ideas.

Characters in this word

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

The shape 老 combines 人 (man), 毛 (hair), and 匕 (cane), showing a man with long hair leaning on a cane.

Open 老 →

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 黃; 黄 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
田田tiánfield
Sound part声符shēngfú
炗
炗guāng黃huáng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 黃 pairs 田 (field) with 炗 (light), which gives the sound; the simplified 黄 is a shorthand and its parts are not historical components.

Open 黄 →

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 歷; 历 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 历 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (简历, 经历) it is 歷; in others (日历) it is 曆.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
止止zhǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
厤
厤lì歷lì
Same sound today

The form 歷 pairs 止 with the sound part 厤.

Open 历 →

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