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耋

dié
adjective

Meanings

  1. 1 aged; very old
  2. 2 in one's eighties

Examples

HSK 7-9
满堂都是耄耋老人。
Mǎn táng dōu shì màodié lǎorén.
The hall was filled with venerable elders in their eighties and nineties.
HSK 7-9
他虽已耋年，仍耳聪目明。
Tā suī yǐ dié nián, réng ěrcōng mùmíng.
Though of great age, he was still hale and clear of mind.

Tips

usage
耋 is literary and bound, appearing in 耄耋 ('advanced old age', traditionally one's eighties and nineties). It is a respectful, written term for the very elderly.

Components

radical
老 lǎo
old; aged
老 (old, a bent figure with long hair and a cane) sits on top and is the indexing radical. It directly supplies the core meaning: great old age.
phonetic
至 zhì
to reach; phonetic
至 supplies the sound (zhì shifting to dié). Its sense 'to reach / arrive at' also faintly suits the idea of having reached a great age.

Stroke Order

耋 dié