Chinese word

责备

Pronunciation

Pinyinzé bèi

Meaning

  • verbblame

Example

别总是责备别人。bié zǒng shì zé bèi bié rén

Don't always blame other people.

Illustration for 责备 (blame)

More examples

他因为报告的错误而被上司责备。tā yīn wèi bào gào de cuò wù ér bèi shàng sī zé bèi

He was blamed by his supervisor for errors in the report.

Core concept

A spoken judgment that places another person's mistake or shortcoming directly before them.

Common phrases

  • 当面责备对方dāng miàn zé bèi duì fāng

    blame the other person face-to-face

  • 当众责备孩子dāng zhòng zé bèi hái zi

    scold the child in public

  • 互相责备对方hù xiāng zé bèi duì fāng

    blame each other

Similar words

批评pī píng: Point out faults in someone's behavior or in a piece of work to help improve it.
指责zhǐ zé: Reproach someone for a fault or mistake while stressing that the person is responsible.
责怪zé guài: Show annoyance with someone by blaming the person for an action.
斥责chì zé: Rebuke someone loudly or forcefully for a fault or mistake.

Definition in Chinese

以批评性的言辞指出他人的缺点或过错，语气常带责难，可能使对方感到受指责。yǐ pī píng xìng de yán cí zhǐ chū tā rén de quē diǎn huò guò cuò yǔ qì cháng dài zé nàn kě néng shǐ duì fāng gǎn dào shòu zhǐ zé

Word origin

The word 责备 (zébèi, "to blame") combines 责 (zé, "to blame") with 备 (bèi, "to prepare"); the whole compound has developed an established sense of speaking critically about another person's fault.

Usage tips

  • When harmony matters, a specific description of the action and its result usually sounds less harsh than this verb, which centers the person's fault.

Other meanings

  • scoldverb
  • criticizeverb

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word