赌鬼 (dǔ guǐ) — inveterate gambler

Definition

赌鬼 is a strongly pejorative label for someone hopelessly addicted to gambling — like 'gambling fiend'. It goes beyond a casual gambler and implies a ruined, obsessive habit.

noun
inveterate gambler
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 赌鬼。
    dǔ guǐ Bǎ jiā chǎn dōu shū guāng le.
    The inveterate gambler lost all his family property.
  • 赌鬼，。
    Tā bú shì yí gè dǔ guǐ, zhǐ shì ǒu ěr dǎ dǎ má jiàng.
    He is not an inveterate gambler, he just plays mahjong occasionally.
  • 赌鬼，。
    Qiān wàn bié biàn chéng dǔ guǐ, fǒu zé huì huǐ le zì jǐ.
    Never become an inveterate gambler, or you will ruin yourself.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

赌dǔgamble
鬼guǐaddict/devil

赌 refers to gambling, and 鬼 paints the person as a gambling devil, so it means an inveterate gambler.

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 賭; 赌 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèishell; money
Sound part声符shēngfú
者
者zhě賭dǔ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 賭 combines 貝 (shell; money) with 者, and this shape expresses the meaning to wager or to bet. The simplified 赌 is a shorthand.

Open 赌 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

鬼 originally drew a kneeling figure with an ugly face, perhaps a mask; the small lower right dot is a later added tail.

Open 鬼 →

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