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明智 (míng zhì) — wise, sensible

Definition

明智 describes a decision or action that is wise and shows good judgment. It focuses on the choice itself, unlike 理性 (a rational person) or 懂事 (a sensible child). Stronger and more literary than 合理.

adjective
wisesensible

Examples

  • 明智。
    Tā zuò le yí gè míng zhì de xuǎn zé.
    He made a wise choice.
  • ，明智。
    Zài kùn nan de shí hou, míng zhì de zuò fǎ shì xiān lěng jìng xià lái.
    In difficult times, the wise thing to do is to calm down first.
  • 明智，。
    Zhè ge jué dìng fēi cháng míng zhì, dà jiā dōu tóng yì.
    This decision is very wise, and everyone agrees.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

明míngclear-sighted
智zhìwise

明 and 智 both suggest clear-sighted wisdom, giving a wise and sensible meaning.

Characters in this word

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

明 combines 日 (sun) and 月 (moon), showing the sun just rising while the moon has not yet set, or two bright objects in the sky, to express brightness.

Open 明 →

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

The early form 智 used 大 (adult), 口 (mouth), and 子 (child): an adult speaking to pass knowledge to a child.

Open 智 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Personality & Traits5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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