茂利
Chinese
editphonetic | |||
---|---|---|---|
trad. (茂利) | 茂 | 利 | |
simp. #(茂利) | 茂 | 利 | |
alternative forms | 茂里 瞀里 |
Etymology
editA theory is it is a shortened transliteration of English mullion. In the early 20th century, the British introduced Western architectural elements to Hong Kong, including the mullion. The locals at the time would liken gawkers (anyone who stares blankly due to being dumbfounded etc.) to a mullion standing in the middle of a window, and later the slang would apply to any dumb person.[1]
Another theory is the term is a concatenation of 瞀 (mào, “ignorant”) and 里 (lǐ, “short for 大鄉里”).[2]
Pronunciation
edit- Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Jyutping: mau6 lei2
- Yale: mauh léi
- Cantonese Pinyin: mau6 lei2
- Guangdong Romanization: meo6 léi2
- Sinological IPA (key): /mɐu̯²² lei̯³⁵/
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
Noun
edit茂利