谎称 (huǎng chèn) — to falsely claim; to allege (something untrue) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A formal verb meaning 'to falsely claim / allege' — a deliberate lie about a fact, stronger than the everyday 假装 (to pretend to do something). Often used in news and legal contexts.

verb

to falsely claimto allege (something untrue)

Examples

谎称，。
Tā huǎng chèn zì jǐ shì jì zhě, hùn jìn le huì chǎng.
He falsely claimed to be a journalist and sneaked into the venue.
谎称，。
Xián yí rén huǎng chèn bú zài xiàn chǎng, dàn bèi jiān kòng lù xiàng jiē chuān le.
The suspect falsely claimed not to be at the scene, but was exposed by surveillance footage.
谎称，。
Tā huǎng chèn yǒu jí shì, tí qián lí kāi le gōng sī.
She falsely claimed to have an urgent matter and left the company early.

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.

谎 means false, and 称 means claim, so 谎称 is claiming something falsely.

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 謊; 谎 is its simplified writing.

言荒謊

Meaning part形符xíngfú

言言yánspeech

Sound part声符shēngfú

荒

荒huāng謊huǎng

Same sound today

The traditional form 謊 pairs 言 (speech) with 荒, which shows how it was pronounced; the simplified 谎 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 稱; 称 is its simplified writing.

禾爯稱

Meaning part形符xíngfú

禾禾hérice

Sound part声符shēngfú

爯

爯chēng稱chēng

Same sound today

The traditional form 稱 pairs 禾 (rice) with 爯, a part giving the sound; it is explained as measuring rice. The simplified 称 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

Communication & Speech

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