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好奇 (hào qí) — curious, inquisitive

Definition

Curious in a calm, ongoing way — a steady interest in knowing more. 惊奇 is a sharper, momentary reaction of being amazed or surprised by something unexpected.

adjective
curiousinquisitive

Examples

  • 好奇。
    Tā hào qí dì kàn zhe wǒ.
    He looked at me curiously.
  • 好奇。
    Wǒ duì tā de xīn gōng zuò hěn hào qí.
    I am very curious about his new job.
  • 好奇。
    Xiǎo gǒu duì shén me dōu hào qí.
    The puppy is curious about everything.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

好hǎoto like
奇qístrange

好 'to like' and 奇 'strange' together mean attracted to what is new or strange.

Characters in this word

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

好 joins 女 (woman) and 子 (child), understood as a woman with a child, linked to goodness or affection.

Open 好 →

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
大大dàbig; great
Sound part声符shēngfú
可
可kě奇
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

奇 pairs 大 (big; great) with 可, a sound part.

Open 奇 →
Appears in
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