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人命 (rén mìng) — human life

Definition

人命 means 'human life' specifically in the sense of a life at stake or a life lost (in accidents, disasters, conflict) — more weighted and serious than the abstract 生命.

noun
human life
Measure word · 条

Examples

  • ，人命。
    Zhè shì yì qǐ zhòng dà shì gù, chū le sān tiáo rén mìng.
    This was a major accident, costing three human lives.
  • ，人命。
    Zài zhàn chǎng shàng, rén mìng shì zuì bǎo guì de.
    On the battlefield, human life is the most precious.
  • ，。
    rén mìng Guān tiān, wǒ men yí dìng yào chá qīng zhēn xiàng.
    Human life is paramount; we must get to the truth.

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.

人rénperson
命mìnglife

人 names the human kind, and 命 names life, giving human life.

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.

Open 人 →

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
令
令lìng命mìng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

命 combines 口, a mouth, with 令, which gives the sound.

Open 命 →
Appears in
People (General)

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