宝玉 (bǎoyù): precious jade; treasured gem

Meanings

1 precious jade; treasured gem
2 Jia Baoyu, the male protagonist of Dream of the Red Chamber

Characters

宝

Examples

贾宝玉是《红楼梦》的主人公。

Jiǎbǎoyù shì 《 Hónglóumèng 》 de zhǔréngōng.

Jia Baoyu is the protagonist of Dream of the Red Chamber.

他出生时口中含着一块宝玉。

Tā chūshēng shí kǒuzhōng hán zhe yīkuài bǎoyù.

He was born with a piece of precious jade in his mouth.

Tips

culture

贾宝玉 (Jiǎ Bǎoyù) is the romantic, sensitive hero of 《红楼梦》 (Dream of the Red Chamber, by Cao Xueqin) — one of China's Four Great Classical Novels. He is born clutching a magical jade, which becomes the symbol of his fate; the title literally means 'precious jade'.

memory

宝 = 'treasure / precious' + 玉 = 'jade'. Treasured jade — both the literal stone and the literary character named after it.