Kilo Lingo

(dào qiàn) - to apologise in Mandarin

dàoqiàn

Traditional: 道歉

Line drawing of 道歉
Coloured illustration of 道歉
#915 of 5,000 Core 1000

Translation

to apologise

Word origin

The word 道歉 combines 道 'to say, the way' with 歉 'apology, deficiency', literally 'to speak an apology'. 道 has the 辶 (movement) radical and 首 (head); 歉 has the 欠 (lack, to owe) element. Together they mean to apologise.

Origin
compound
Root
道 (dào, to say: 辶 movement + 首 head) + 歉 (qiàn, apology: 欠 to owe)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 道

Stroke order for 歉

Examples

I should apologise to you.

He apologised sincerely.

You do not need to apologise.

He apologised to the teacher.

You should apologise to her.

道歉 (dào qiàn) means to apologise.

Where this fits

Used in

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Mandarin · Free printables

道歉: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "道歉" (to apologise): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

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This word is part of lesson 19.