智谋 (zhì móu) — resourcefulness, strategic ingenuity

Definition

noun

resourcefulnessstrategic ingenuity

智谋。
Tā de zhì móu bāng zhù gōng sī dù guò le wēi jī.
His resourcefulness helped the company get through the crisis.
，智谋。
Zài zhàn zhēng zhōng, zhì móu wǎng wǎng bǐ wǔ lì gèng zhòng yào.
In war, resourcefulness is often more important than military force.
智谋。
Zhè ge gù shi zhǎn xiàn le gǔ rén de gāo chāo zhì móu.
This story showcases the extraordinary resourcefulness of the ancients.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéSide by side

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

谋móustrategy

智 (wisdom) and 谋 (strategy) stand side by side, giving the sense of resourcefulness.

Characters in this word

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.

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 謀; 谋 is its simplified writing.

言某謀

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

某

Same sound today

The traditional form 謀 uses 言 to show it relates to speech and 某 to show its sound; the simplified 谋 is a later shorthand.