怜惜 (lián xī) — to take pity on; to feel tenderness for

Definition

怜惜 (liánxī) means feeling tender pity for someone — softer and more emotional than the detached 同情. 心疼 is similar but usually targets a close person; 怜惜 extends to strangers or weak creatures.

verb

to take pity onto feel tenderness for

Examples

怜惜。
Tā duì nà zhī shòu shāng de xiǎo māo fēi cháng lián xī.
He has great pity for that injured kitten.
，怜惜。
Kàn dào tā de chǔ jìng, wǒ xīn zhōng chōng mǎn le lián xī.
Seeing her situation, my heart was filled with tenderness.
怜惜。
Tā men lián xī zhè wèi gū guǎ lǎo rén de zāo yù.
They pity the plight of this lonely elderly person.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

怜liánpity

惜xīcherish

Both 怜 and 惜 convey pity and tenderness, together meaning to care for someone gently.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 憐; 怜 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

心心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

粦

粦lín憐lián

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 憐 combines 心 (heart) with 粦, which gives it its sound; the simplified 怜 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 怜 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

忄昔惜

Meaning part形符xíngfú

忄Written in full as心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

昔

昔xī惜⁰xī

Same sound today

惜 has 忄, the heart, and 昔, which gives the sound. 昔 also points to the past or an ending, so the feeling is about something past.

Open 惜 →

Appears in