兰交

蘭交
lánjiāo
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 close friendship
  2. 2 meeting of like minds (literary)

Examples

Tāmen èr rén jié wéi lánjiāo, gòng dù duō nián.
The two of them formed a close friendship and stood together for many years.
Guìyǒu lánjiāo, nán néng kě guì.
True friendship of kindred spirits is rare and precious.

Tips

history
From 《易经·》: 同心同心 ('When two people share one heart, their force can cut metal; their words are as fragrant as orchids'). (lán, orchid) became the literary symbol of pure, fragrant friendship.
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Highly literary — you'll mostly meet this in classical poetry, scholarly prose, or Chinese-language tattoo lists. For modern 'close friend', use 知己 (zhījǐ) or 挚友 (zhìyǒu).

Stroke Order

lán
jiāo