吟诗 (yín shī) — to recite poetry (with a chant-like, musical intonation)

Definition

吟诗 means reciting poetry in a melodic, chanting voice — a literary, almost musical performance, not just reading aloud. Compare 背诗 (memorize and recite plainly) and 朗读 (read aloud).

verb
to recite poetry (with a chant-like, musical intonation)

Examples

  • 吟诗。
    Tā xǐ huan zài yuè guāng xià yín shī.
    He likes to recite poetry under the moonlight.
  • 。
    Yé ye yín le yì shǒu táng shī gěi wǒ tīng.
    Grandpa recited a Tang poem to me.
  • 吟诗。
    Gǔ dài wén rén cháng jù zài yì qǐ yín shī zuò huà.
    Ancient literati often gathered to recite poetry and paint.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

吟yínchant
诗shīpoetry

吟 is to chant or recite, and 诗 is poetry, so the action is reciting poetry.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
今
今jīn吟yín
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 口 shows it relates to the mouth, and the right part 今 gives a clue to its sound.

Open 吟 →

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 詩; 诗 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech
Sound part声符shēngfú
寺
寺sì詩shī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 詩 combines 言 (speech) with 寺 as a sound part, because poetry is a kind of speech; the simplified 诗 is a later abbreviation.

Open 诗 →

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