TongTong
Sign in

令人鼓舞 (lìng rén gǔ wǔ) — encouraging, heartening

Definition

A formal written expression meaning 'encouraging / heartening', used to praise results, news, or progress. 令人 is a formal literary way of saying 'makes people' (more formal than 让).

verb
encouragingheartening

Examples

  • 令人鼓舞。
    Zhè ge xiāo xi zhēn shì lìng rén gǔ wǔ.
    This news is really encouraging.
  • 令人鼓舞。
    Tā de chéng jì shí fēn lìng rén gǔ wǔ.
    His results are very encouraging.
  • 令人鼓舞。
    Zhè cì huì yì de chéng guǒ lìng rén gǔ wǔ.
    The achievements of this meeting are heartening.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 亼亼jí
  • 卩卩jié

In 令, the upper 亼 is an open mouth and the lower 卩 is a kneeling person, together showing someone giving orders.

Open 令 →

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 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 壴壴zhùdrum
  • 支支zhīhand holding drumstick

鼓 combines 壴, a drum, with 支, a hand holding a drumstick, so the character pictures a drum being struck.

Open 鼓 →

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
舛舛chuǎnsteps, feet in convergent direction
Sound part声符shēngfú
無
無wú舞wǔ
Same sound today

舞 combines 舛, showing feet in converging steps, with 無 above. 無 gave the sound and also preserved its older meaning of dancing, so the shape points to dancing.

Open 舞 →
Appears in
Emotions & Feelings

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.