小憩 (xiǎo qì) — short rest; brief break | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literary/literate noun for a short rest, more formal and written than the everyday 休息.

noun

short restbrief break

Examples

小憩。
Wǔ fàn hòu wǒ xǐ huan xiǎo qì yí huì r.
I like to take a short rest after lunch.
小憩。
Tā pā zài zhuō shàng xiǎo qì le piàn kè.
He took a brief nap on the desk.
，小憩。
Gōng zuò jiàn xì, xiǎo qì yí xià néng tí gāo xiào lǜ.
Taking a short break during work can improve efficiency.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

小 marks the rest as brief, and 憩 names the act of resting.

Characters in this word

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

八八bāto divide; to separate
丨丨gǔnsmall object

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

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

恬恬tiántranquil
息息xīrest

憩 combines 恬 (tranquil) and 息 (rest) to show resting quietly.

Appears in

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