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感慨 (gǎn kǎi) — to sigh with emotion; to be deeply moved (often with a sense of reflection or regret)

Definition

感慨 means to sigh with emotion, often about the past — there is a reflective, rueful edge that 感动 (simply 'touched') lacks. Unlike 感悟 (a new insight), 感慨 is the feeling itself, not what you learn from it.

verb
to sigh with emotionto be deeply moved (often with a sense of reflection or regret)

Examples

  • ，。
    Kàn dào lǎo zhào piàn, tā bù yóu gǎn kǎi wàn qiān.
    Seeing the old photos, he couldn't help but feel a flood of emotions.
  • ，感慨。
    Lí bié zhī jì, dà jiā dōu shí fēn gǎn kǎi.
    At the moment of parting, everyone was deeply moved.
  • 感慨：“。”
    Tā gǎn kǎi dào: "rén shēng zhēn shì biàn huà wú cháng."
    He sighed with emotion: 'Life is truly unpredictable.'

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

感gǎnfeeling
慨kǎisigh

感 (feeling) and 慨 (sigh) stand together, expressing being moved with regret.

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

感 pairs 咸, which gives the sound, with 心, the heart, for feeling.

Open 感 →

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

The left side 心 is a heart, showing the character concerns feelings; the right side 既 is used for its sound.

Open 慨 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6

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