勒
bridle; restrain; force; carve; surname
Meanings
7 senses · 12 examplesnoun
bridle with bit for horses
literaryUsed in formal literary contexts, rarely used in modern daily speech.
Ancient cavalry would put a bridle on their war horses before battle.
verb
rein in; pull up horses
neutralCommonly used in fixed phrases like 悬崖勒马.
He suddenly reined in the reins to stop the frightened horse.
Faced with temptation, we should learn to rein in at the brink of disaster and stop losses in time.
verb
force; compel; coerce
formalUsed in formal and official contexts, often paired with nouns like 命令, 派, 索.
The government ordered the illegal factory to immediately suspend production for rectification.
During the war, the enemy forced local people to transport supplies for them.
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The act of criminals extorting protection money from businesses will be punished by law.
verb
command; lead troops
archaicOnly used in ancient literary texts, not common in modern Chinese.
The general personally led the six armies to the frontline to fight the enemy.
verb
carve; engrave
literaryUsed in formal literary contexts, often paired with 石, 碑, 金.
Ancient craftsmen would carve stone tablets to record meritorious deeds for future generations.
This stone tablet is engraved with an inscription by a famous Tang Dynasty calligrapher.
noun
surname Le
neutralA relatively rare Chinese surname.
Mr. Le is a new client of our company.
noun
lux (unit of illuminance)
technicalA technical term used in physics and lighting engineering.
The illuminance requirement for this meeting room is 300 lux.
1 lux equals 1 lumen per square meter.