Chinese word

贪婪

Pronunciation

Pinyintān lán

Meaning

  • adjectivegreedy

Example

他太贪婪，从不愿意分享。tā tài tān lán cóng bú yuàn yì fēn xiǎng

He is too greedy and never wants to share.

Illustration for 贪婪 (greedy)

More examples

他的目光显得很贪婪。tā de mù guāng xiǎn de hěn tān lán

His gaze seems very greedy.

Core concept

A hand metaphorically closed around resources, still reaching for more instead of letting others share.

Common phrases

  • 贪婪的目光tān lán de mù guāng

    greedy gaze

  • 贪婪的欲望tān lán de yù wàng

    greedy desire

Similar words

贪心tān xīn: Eager to get even a little more and difficult to satisfy.
贪得无厌tān dé wú yàn: Continuing to seek more gains because no amount ever feels enough.
吝啬lìn sè: Holding on tightly to money or things instead of giving or sharing them.
自私zì sī: Caring mainly about personal interests and ignoring the interests of others.

Definition in Chinese

指总想得到更多、即便已有也不愿分享，表现为对物或利益的贪取与独占倾向。zhǐ zǒng xiǎng dé dào gèng duō jí biàn yí yǒu yě bú yuàn fēn xiǎng biǎo xiàn wèi duì wù huò lì yì de tān qǔ yǔ dú zhàn qīng xiàng

Word origin

贪 (tān, "to covet") + 婪 (lán, "to be greedy") combine two expressions of wanting to possess, forming a word for an intense, selfish hunger for more.

Usage tips

  • English sometimes uses greedy playfully, as in greedy for knowledge, but this Chinese adjective normally keeps a critical tone, so praise for strong interest needs another expression.

Other meanings

  • avariciousadjective
  • insatiableadjective
  • graspingadjective

Opposites

Related words

  • 贪婪地tān lán dìgreedilyadverb
  • 贪婪者tān lán zhěgreedy personnoun

Word lists with this word