开恩

開恩

kāi'ēn

verb #31,318

Meanings

1 to grant a favor (especially of a superior or deity)
2 to show mercy
3 to take pity

Characters

kindness; grace

Examples

求大人开恩。

Qiú dàrén kāi'ēn.

I beg Your Honor to show mercy.

老板开恩，让他多休息了一天。

Lǎobǎn kāi'ēn, ràng tā duō xiūxi le yì tiān.

The boss took pity and gave him an extra day off.

Tips

register

Originally 'to bestow grace from above' — used for an emperor pardoning a criminal, a deity granting blessings, or a Christian God showing grace. In modern speech it survives in pleading-for-mercy clichés (求…开恩) and ironic everyday use (老板开恩 'the boss took pity'). Note the apostrophe in pinyin: kāi + ēn → kāi'ēn, since 'en' is a separate syllable.

Stroke Order

开 kāi

恩 ēn