指点 (zhǐ diǎn) — to point out, to give guidance or instruction;… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

指点 covers two senses: to point out / give guidance (softer, more helpful than 指示 or 指导) and to pick at someone's faults (nagging, like 欺负). For neutral "point out," 指出 is the standard choice; 指点 adds a hint of coaching or, negatively, fault-finding.

verb

to point outto give guidance or instructionto criticizeto pick on (someone's faults)

Examples

指点。
Lǎo shī nài xīn dì zhǐ diǎn le wǒ de zuò wén zhōng de wèn tí.
The teacher patiently pointed out the problems in my essay.
指点。
Tā jīng cháng zhǐ diǎn nián qīng rén rú hé chuàng yè.
He often gives guidance to young people on how to start a business.
指点，。
Tā zǒng xǐ huan zhǐ diǎn bié rén de quē diǎn, ràng rén hěn bù shū fu.
She always likes to pick on others' shortcomings, making people very uncomfortable.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

指 and 点 both mean to point, together giving guidance or direction.

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.

扌旨指

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒu

Sound part声符shēngfú

旨

旨zhǐ指zhǐ

Same sound today

The left part 扌 is the hand form 手. The right part 旨 gives the sound.

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 點; 点 is its simplified writing.

黑占點

Meaning part形符xíngfú

黑黑hēiblack

Sound part声符shēngfú

占

占zhàn點diǎn(r)

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

The traditional form 點 pairs 黑 (black) with 占 for its sound; the simplified 点 is a later abbreviation.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Communication & Speech

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