赖 (lài) - Lai — to rely on, depend on & to blame, repudiate

赖Tone 4

lài ｜ 13 strokes ｜ radical:

俊梁

赖 · lài

Lai — to rely on, depend on;

to blame, repudiate;

to hang on in a place;

to deny;

a surname.

Lai — to rely on, depend onto blame, repudiateto hang on in a place

Usage highlights

To rely onTo be shamelessTo deny a debtTo hang on stubbornlyTo blame falselyGood

Synonyms

  • 依靠— to rely on, depend on
  • 依赖— to depend on, rely on

Antonyms

  • 独立— independent
  • 承担— to undertake, bear responsibility

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • He relies on his parents for support (依赖父母).
  • The child is being unreasonable (耍赖).
  • They denied the debt (赖账).
  • He stubbornly refused to leave (赖着不走).

Collocations

  • To rely on(依赖)
  • To be shameless(耍赖)
  • To deny a debt(赖账)
  • To hang on stubbornly(赖着)
  • To blame falsely(诬赖)
  • Good-for-nothing(无赖)

Idioms

  • A confirmed rogue(死皮赖脸)
  • To repudiate a debt(赖债不还)
  • To live off others(赖以为生)
  • Completely deny(百般抵赖)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • As a surname, Lai is one of the common Chinese family names with a long history.
  • The character often carries a negative connotation in modern usage, associated with dependency, denial, or shamelessness.
  • In historical contexts, it could also simply mean 'to rely upon' without the negative overtone.

FAQ