人味 (rén wèi) — humanness; humanity; the quality that makes lif… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Refers to the human warmth and dignity in how people act or in a work of art — what makes something feel genuinely humane rather than cold or mechanical.

noun

humannesshumanitythe quality that makes life worthwhile

Examples

人味。
Zhè běn xiǎo shuō chōng mǎn le rén wèi.
This novel is full of humanity.
。
Tā duì yuán gōng hěn yǒu rén wèi.
He treats his employees with great humanity.
，人味。
Zài xiàn dài shè huì, wǒ men cháng cháng tán lùn rén wèi de quē shī.
In modern society, we often talk about the lack of humanity.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

味wèiquality

人 (human) and 味 (quality) combine to mean the quality that makes someone human.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

口未味

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

未

未wèi味wèi

Same sound today

味 combines 口 (mouth) with 未, which gives the sound wèi; the mouth part relates to taste.

Appears in

Abstract Concepts

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