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忠于 (zhōng yú) — to be loyal to, to be faithful to (a person, cause, or ideal)

Definition

忠于 is a verb meaning 'to be loyal / faithful to' — a person, oath, or cause (more concrete than the abstract 体现). It overlaps with 忠实 (which is mainly an adjective) and the firmer 坚守 ('hold fast to' an ideal through effort).

verb
to be loyal toto be faithful to (a person, cause, or ideal)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 忠于，。
    Tā zhōng yú zì jǐ de zǔ guó, cóng bú pàn biàn.
    He is loyal to his motherland and never betrays it.
  • ，忠于。
    Zuò wéi shì bīng, nǐ bì xū zhōng yú nǐ de shì yán.
    As a soldier, you must be loyal to your oath.
  • 忠于，。
    Tā yì shēng zhōng yú jiào yù shì yè, péi yǎng le wú shù xué shēng.
    She was loyal to education her whole life, cultivating countless students.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

忠zhōngloyal
于yúto

The idea of loyalty is aimed with 于 at a person, cause, or ideal.

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
中
中zhōng忠zhōng
Same sound today

忠 pairs 心, meaning heart, with 中, which gives its sound.

Open 忠 →

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

  • 一一yīflat stream of air
  • 丂丂kǎoto exhale

The old shape of 于 may have pictured an ancient wind instrument. Another explanation reads 一 as a flat stream of air and 丂 as an exhaling mark.

Open 于 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Attitudes & Opinions

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