败仗 (bài zhàng) — defeat, lost battle

Definition

noun
defeatlost battle
Measure word · 场

Examples

  • 败仗。
    Zhè chǎng zhàn zhēng yǐ dí rén de bài zhàng gào zhōng.
    This war ended with the enemy's defeat.
  • 败仗，。
    Miàn duì zhè cì bài zhàng, tā men bìng méi yǒu fàng qì.
    Faced with this defeat, they did not give up.
  • 败仗。
    Lì shǐ shàng zhù míng de bài zhàng wǎng wǎng gǎi biàn le guó jiā de mìng yùn.
    Famous defeats in history often changed the fate of nations.

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.

败bàidefeat
仗zhàngbattle

败 (defeated) + 仗 (battle) -> a battle that was lost.

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 敗; 败 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
攵Written in full as攴pūstrike
Sound part声符shēngfú
貝
貝bèi敗bài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 敗 has 貝 as the sound component and 攴 (written 攵) meaning strike. The simplified 败 is a later abbreviation, so its parts are not the original components.

Open 败 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 仗 →

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