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无限 (wú xiàn) — unlimited, unbounded

Definition

Adjective meaning 'unlimited, boundless' (time, resources, possibilities). Antonym of 有限; for sheer number see 无数.

adjective
unlimitedunbounded
Easily confused

Examples

  • 无限，。
    Zhè zhǒng zī yuán shì wú xiàn de, kě yǐ suí biàn yòng.
    This resource is unlimited; you can use it freely.
  • 无限。
    Tā duì xué xí de rè qíng wú xiàn.
    His enthusiasm for learning is unbounded.
  • 无限。
    Zhè piàn tiān kōng gěi rén yì zhǒng wú xiàn de zì yóu gǎn.
    This sky gives one a sense of unlimited freedom.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

无wúno/without
限xiànlimit

The sense comes from 无 (no/without) plus 限 (limit), giving no limit.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 無; 无 is its simplified writing.

For the simplified 无, the story is about 無. 無 drew a person dancing with ox tails held in both hands to pray for rain, then was borrowed for 'have no', so the picture does not explain that meaning.

Open 无 →

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
⻖Written in full as阜fùmound
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn限xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

限 pairs ⻖ (mound, written 阜) with 艮 as a sound part; the mound side gives the sense of a boundary or limit.

Open 限 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5Quantity & Amount

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