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妒忌 (dù jì) — to envy, to be jealous of

Definition

妒忌 means to envy or be jealous of someone, usually over their possessions, success, or advantages — the emotion itself, not the protective feeling of romantic jealousy (which is 吃醋).

verb
to envyto be jealous of

Examples

  • 妒忌。
    Tā hěn dù jì wǒ de xīn gōng zuò.
    She is very jealous of my new job.
  • 妒忌？
    Nǐ wèi shén me yào dù jì bié rén ne?
    Why do you have to be jealous of others?
  • 妒忌。
    Tā cóng lái bú dù jì rèn hé rén.
    He never envies anyone.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

妒dùenvy
忌jìjealousy

妒 and 忌 both point to envy and jealousy, so together they mean to be jealous.

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
女女nǚwoman
Sound part声符shēngfú
戶
戶hù妒
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 妒, the left part 女 shows the idea of a woman, while the right part 戶 supplies the sound.

Open 妒 →

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
己
己jǐ忌jì
Same sound today

忌 combines 己, which gives the sound, with 心, the heart, as the part connected to the meaning.

Open 忌 →
Appears in
Emotions & Feelings

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