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时运 (shí yùn) — luck, fortune (especially of a period or one's life circumstances)

Definition

时运 refers to the luck or fortune of a period in one's life (时运不济, 时运亨通), not ordinary day-to-day luck. In modern Chinese it mostly appears in these set phrases to talk about whether times are favorable or unfavorable.

noun
luckfortune (especially of a period or one's life circumstances)

Examples

  • 时运，。
    Tā zuì jìn shí yùn bú jì, zuò shén me dōu bú shùn lì.
    He's been unlucky lately; nothing goes smoothly.
  • 时运，。
    Rén rén dōu xī wàng shí yùn hēng tōng, shì yè yǒu chéng.
    Everyone hopes for good fortune and career success.
  • 时运，。
    Gǔ rén rèn wéi shí yùn yóu tiān dìng, fēi rén lì kě gǎi.
    Ancient people believed that fortune is determined by heaven and cannot be changed by human effort.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

时shítime
运yùnfortune

"时" (time) and "运" (fortune) combine to mean one's luck in a period.

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 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →

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 運; 运 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòmotion
Sound part声符shēngfú
軍
軍jūn運yùn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 運 combines 辵, meaning motion, with 軍 to give the sound; the simplified 运 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical components.

Open 运 →
Appears in
Abstract Concepts

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