隐退 (yǐn tuì) — to retreat from public life, to go into seclusion (of celebrities, officials, etc.)

Definition

A formal verb for high-profile figures (actors, generals, officials) who voluntarily step away from public life. Implies a deliberate, permanent withdrawal rather than just leaving a post.

verb
to retreat from public lifeto go into seclusion (of celebrities, officials, etc.)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 隐退。
    Nà wèi zhù míng yǎn yuán zài sì shí suì shí jiù yǐn tuì le.
    That famous actor retreated from public life at the age of forty.
  • 隐退，，。
    yǐn tuì Hòu, tā zhuān xīn xiě zuò, chū bǎn le duō bù zuò pǐn.
    After going into seclusion, he focused on writing and published many works.
  • 隐退。
    Zhè wèi jiāng jūn zài zhàn zhēng jié shù hòu xuǎn zé le yǐn tuì.
    This general chose to go into seclusion after the war ended.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

隐yǐnhide
退tuìretreat

隐 means hide and 退 means retreat, so the word names withdrawing from public life.

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 隱; 隐 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
阝Written in full as阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
㥯
㥯㥯隱yǐn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 隱 pairs 阝 (阜) with 㥯 to give the sound; the simplified 隐 is a shorthand, so its right side is not 㥯.

Open 隐 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 皀皀jífood vessel
  • 夊夊suīdownward foot

退 originally showed 皀, a food vessel, with 夊, a downward foot, for leaving the table after eating. In modern 退, the vessel part 皀 changed into an unrelated shape.

Open 退 →

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