耷拉 (dā lā) — to droop, to hang down (of ears, tail, eyelids, etc.)

Definition

A vivid verb for soft, limp things drooping or hanging down (ears, eyelids, leaves, a dog's tail). Used in the 着 construction to describe the ongoing droopy state.

verb
to droopto hang down (of ears, tail, eyelids, etc.)

Examples

  • 耷拉，。
    Xiǎo gǒu de ěr duo dā lā zhe, kàn qǐ lái bù kāi xīn.
    The puppy's ears are drooping; it looks unhappy.
  • ，耷拉。
    Tā tài lèi le, yǎn pí dōu dā lā xià lái le.
    He was so tired that his eyelids were drooping.
  • 耷拉，。
    Zhè kē huā de yè zi quán dā lā zhe, gāi jiāo shuǐ le.
    This flower's leaves are all drooping — it's time to water it.

Origin

Single-morpheme word
构词法gòucífǎ
联绵liánmiánBound pair

Two characters that only ever appear together, spelling one ancient two-syllable word.

耷dā
拉lā

The characters 耷 and 拉 do not carry separate meanings here; together they describe something drooping.

Sound-only characters

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
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
立
立lì拉lā
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

拉 pairs 手 (hand) with 立, a component that supplies the sound.

Open 拉 →

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