诬赖 (wū lài) — to falsely accuse (someone of a crime or wrongdoing), to incriminate falsely

Definition

诬赖 (wū lài) means to blame someone for something they didn't do — the focus is on a false accusation against a person. Often used as a separable verb: 诬赖人 (lump the object) or 诬…赖 (split the object).

verb
to falsely accuse (someone of a crime or wrongdoing)to incriminate falsely

Examples

  • 诬赖。
    Tā wū lài wǒ tōu le tā de qián.
    He falsely accused me of stealing his money.
  • 诬赖。
    Bú yào wèi le zì jǐ tuō shēn jiù wū lài bié rén.
    Don't falsely incriminate others just to get yourself off the hook.
  • 诬赖。
    Bèi gào wū lài zhèng rén shuō huǎng.
    The defendant falsely accused the witness of lying.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

诬wūfalsely accuse
赖làiblame

诬 and 赖 both carry the sense of blaming or falsely accusing, giving the meaning of incriminating someone wrongly.

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 誣; 诬 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
巫
巫wū誣wū
Same sound today

The traditional form 誣 pairs 言 (speech) with 巫 as a sound part; the simplified 诬 is a later shorthand.

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 賴; 赖 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèicowry
Sound part声符shēngfú
剌
剌là賴lài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 賴 uses 貝 (a cowry) for profit and 剌 for the sound; the simplified 赖 is a shorthand.

Open 赖 →

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