脊梁

• Pinyin: jǐ liáng
• Desglose de hanzi: 脊 = 月 + ridge component (spinal column); 梁 = 木 + 刃 + 水 (wooden beam — structural support)

Significado

Columna vertebral; (fig.) columna/pilar.

The figurative use is pervasive in Chinese political and literary language. Calling someone 'the backbone of the nation' (民族的脊梁) is a high compliment. Rooted in Confucian ideals of upright character.

Ejemplos

1. 那些默默奉献的劳动者是这个国家真正的脊梁。
2. 他挺直脊梁，坚定地走进了审讯室。
3. 科学家是推动社会进步的脊梁力量。

Guía de uso

Contexto: politics, rhetoric, literature, patriotism

Tono: elevated

Correcto

• 鲁迅笔下那些为民族独立与思想解放而不懈奋斗的知识分子，被誉为支撑近代中国的精神脊梁。(The intellectuals in Lu Xun's writings who strove tirelessly for national independence and intellectual emancipation are acclaimed as the spiritual backbone sustaining modern China.)
• 基层工作者和乡村教师等群体虽鲜少进入公众视野，却始终是中国社会结构中不可或缺的脊梁支柱。(Groups such as grassroots workers and rural teachers, though rarely entering the public eye, have always been the indispensable backbone pillars of China's social structure.)

Incorrecto

• 脊梁骨 is the anatomical colloquial term; in formal writing use 脊椎 for the medical sense and 脊梁 for the figurative sense

Origen e historia

脊 (spine/ridge) + 梁 (beam/ridge — structural support)

Contexto cultural

Generación: All ages

Contexto social: Universal