塗鴉

See also: 涂鸦

Chinese

to smear; daub crow
trad. (塗鴉)
simp. (涂鸦)

Etymology

From a poem by Tang-dynasty poet Lu Tong.

墨汁老鴉 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
墨汁老鸦 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
From: 9th century, Lu Tong, 《示添丁》(Solemn Instructions to the Toddler Boy)
Hū lái àn shàng fān mòzhī, tú mǒ Shī Shū rú lǎoyā. [Pinyin]
All of a sudden you flip o'er the ink — gone are the Canons now daubed like a crow.

Pronunciation


Verb

塗鴉

  1. (often humble) to write (characters, calligraphy) or draw (painting) in a casual, poor or unaesthetic manner; to scrawl; to scribble
    犬儒惜墨如金虎將塗鴉 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
    犬儒惜墨如金虎将涂鸦 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
    From: c. 1963, Nie Gannu, 《訪丘東來烈士陵園故居》
    Quǎnrú xīmòrújīn chù, hǔjiāng túyā yǐ xuè shí. [Pinyin]
    Where a petty scholar stints on the ink, the warrior scrawls liberally with his blood.
  2. to write graffiti; to graffiti; to vandalise
    禁止塗鴉禁止涂鸦   Jìnzhǐ túyā!   Graffiti prohibited.
    塗鴉涂鸦   qiáng shàng de túyā   graffiti on the wall

Synonyms

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