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感知 (gǎn zhī) — perception, sensory awareness

Definition

A formal, written word for 'perception' — the brain's reception and awareness of sensory input, often paired with 能力. More technical and academic than the everyday 感觉 (a feeling).

noun
perceptionsensory awareness

Examples

  • 感知。
    Tā duì zhōu wéi huán jìng de gǎn zhī hěn mǐn ruì.
    He is very sharp in his perception of his surroundings.
  • ，感知。
    Kē xué yán jiū biǎo míng, rén de gǎn zhī yǒu jú xiàn xìng.
    Scientific research shows that human perception has limitations.
  • 感知。
    Zhè zhǒng xùn liàn kě yǐ tí shēng shì jué gǎn zhī néng lì.
    This kind of training can improve visual perception ability.

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gǎnsense
知zhīknow

感 means to sense, and 知 means to know, together giving sensory awareness.

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 →

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

An early form of 知 showed 大 (adult), 口 (mouth), and 子 (child): an adult speaking to a child to pass on knowledge. The 子 part was dropped, and the 大 part changed shape.

Open 知 →
Appears in
Senses

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