赔礼 (péi lǐ) — to apologize, to make amends

Definition

赔礼 (péi lǐ) is a formal verb meaning 'to apologize, to make amends' — stronger and more polite than the everyday 道歉, often paired with it (赔礼道歉) for emphasis.

verb
to apologizeto make amends

Examples

  • ，。
    Tā xiàng wǒ péi le gè lǐ, shì qing jiù suàn le.
    He apologized to me with a gesture, and that was the end of it.
  • 赔礼。
    Nǐ yīng gāi xiàng nà wèi gù kè péi lǐ.
    You should apologize to that customer.
  • ，。
    Tā péi lǐ dào qiàn, tài dù fēi cháng chéng kěn.
    He apologized and made amends with a very sincere attitude.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

赔péimake amends
礼lǐcourtesy

赔 (make amends) plus 礼 (courtesy) forms the idea of offering an apology.

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 賠; 赔 is its simplified writing.

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

In the traditional form 賠, 貝 (shell; money) shows the idea of making amends, and 咅 supplies the sound; the simplified 赔 is a later shorthand.

Open 赔 →

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 禮; 礼 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
礻Written in full as示shìaltar
Sound part声符shēngfú
豊
豊lǐ禮lǐ
Same sound today

The traditional form 禮 pairs 礻 (altar) with 豊, a sound part, for performing rites at the altar; the simplified 礼 is a later shorthand.

Open 礼 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.