駄 (tuó) - pack horse & horse load

駄Tone 2

tuó ｜ 14 strokes ｜ radical:

婷婉

駄 · tuó

pack horse;

horse load;

burden;

to carry on the back;

(in Japanese) to carry;

to bear;

to transport;

also used to indicate something is poor quality or useless.

pack horsehorse loadburden

Usage highlights

pack horseuselesstransport goodsloadpack animalcarrying pole

Synonyms

  • 負— to carry on the back
  • 運— to transport

Antonyms

  • 良— good (antonym to the 'poor quality' sense)
  • 有効— effective (antonym to 駄目)

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The pack horse carried goods (駄馬).
  • This is a useless tool (駄目な道具).
  • He transported the luggage (荷物を駄する).
  • The burden was heavy (重い駄荷).

Collocations

  • pack horse(駄馬)
  • useless(駄目)
  • transport goods(駄運ぶ)
  • load(駄荷)
  • pack animal(駄獣)
  • carrying pole(駄賃)

Idioms

  • Completely useless(全く駄目)
  • Waste of effort(駄骨を折る)
  • Bad habit(駄癖)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Originally referred to pack horses used for transporting goods in ancient China.
  • In Japanese usage, evolved to mean carrying or bearing loads, and by extension something of poor quality.
  • The character is more commonly used in Japanese than in modern Chinese.

FAQ