达赖 (Dá lài) — Dalai Lama

Definition

Title referring to the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism. Acts as a proper noun with no near-synonyms in the HSK list — stand-alone usage, not a general term for a religious leader.

noun
Dalai Lama
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 达赖。
    Dá lài Shì zàng chuán fó jiào de zōng jiào lǐng xiù.
    The Dalai Lama is a religious leader of Tibetan Buddhism.
  • 达赖。
    Dá lài Duō cì qiáng diào hé píng duì huà de zhòng yào xìng.
    The Dalai Lama has repeatedly emphasized the importance of peaceful dialogue.
  • 达赖。
    Guān yú Dá lài de shū jí zài shū diàn lǐ bù duō jiàn.
    Books about the Dalai Lama are rarely seen in bookstores.

Origin

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
大
大dà达dá
Same sound today

This form 达 pairs 辶 (written in full as 辵) with 大 as a sound component.

Open 达 →

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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