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过奖 (guò jiǎng) — to overpraise; to flatter (used as a polite response to a compliment)

Definition

A fixed polite response to a compliment — 'you flatter me'. Unlike 吹捧 or 恭维, which describe the act of flattering, 过奖 is what the recipient says back.

verb
to overpraiseto flatter (used as a polite response to a compliment)

Examples

  • 过奖，。
    Nín guò jiǎng le, wǒ bú guò shì zuò hǎo zì jǐ de běn fèn.
    You flatter me — I just did my duty.
  • 过奖，。
    Dà jiā guò jiǎng, wǒ shí zài bù gǎn dāng.
    You're all too kind — I really don't deserve it.
  • 过奖，。
    Tā zhè yàng shuō zhēn shì guò jiǎng wǒ le, ràng wǒ yǒu diǎn bù hǎo yì si.
    Saying that is really flattering me, making me a bit embarrassed.

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.

过guòtoo much
奖jiǎngpraise

过 means too much, and 奖 means praise, so the word describes praise that is excessive.

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 過; 过 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
咼
咼wāi過guò
Same sound today

The traditional form 過 pairs 辵 (walk) with 咼 as a sound component; the simplified 过 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 过 →

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 獎; 奖 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
犬犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
將
將jiāng獎jiǎng
Same sound today

The traditional form 獎 pairs 將 as a sound part with 犬, a dog; the simplified 奖 is a later shorthand. The evidence says the dog part's meaning is unclear, perhaps referring to guiding a dog by voice.

Open 奖 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6

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