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厌恶 (yàn wù) — to loathe, to detest

Definition

Strong written verb meaning 'to loathe, to detest' — a more formal, intense alternative to 讨厌. Shares 'hate' territory with 恨 and 仇恨 but is dispassionate disgust, not personal enmity.

verb
to loatheto detest

Examples

  • 厌恶。
    Wǒ yàn wù zhè zhǒng bú fù zé rèn de tài dù.
    I detest this kind of irresponsible attitude.
  • 厌恶。
    Tā yàn wù xū wěi de shè jiāo chǎng hé.
    She loathes hypocritical social occasions.
  • 厌恶。
    Tā yàn wù bié rén zài bèi hòu yì lùn tā.
    He detests people gossiping about him behind his back.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

厌yàndislike
恶èdetest

厌 (dislike) and 恶 (detest) combine to mean strong dislike.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 厭; 厌 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
厂厂chǎng
Sound part声符shēngfú
猒
猒yàn厭yàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 厭 combines 厂 as the meaning part with 猒 as the sound part; the simplified 厌 is a later abbreviation.

Open 厌 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 惡; 恶 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
亞
亞yā惡è
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 惡 pairs 心 (heart) as the meaning part with 亞 (yā) as the sound part; the simplified 恶 is a later shorthand.

Open 恶 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Emotions & Feelings5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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