构想 (gòu xiǎng) — to conceive, to formulate (an idea or plan); (n… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

构想 emphasizes conceiving a systematic plan or model, more structured than 想象 ('free-form imagine') and closer to 构思 but broader in scope than creative works.

verb

to conceiveto formulate (an idea or plan)

noun

conceptconception

Examples

构想。
Tā gòu xiǎng le yí gè xīn de jīng jì mó shì.
He conceived a new economic model.
构想。
Zhè ge gòu xiǎng xū yào jìn yí bù wán shàn.
This concept needs further refinement.
构想。
Zhè ge gòu xiǎng gǎi biàn le wǒ men de kàn fǎ.
This concept changed our perspective.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

构gòuto form

想xiǎngthought

构 (to form) and 想 (thought) combine to mean forming a plan or idea.

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.

木勾构

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

勾

勾gōu构gòu

Same sound today

构 combines 木 (wood) with 勾, which gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

相心想

Meaning part形符xíngfú

心心xīnheart, mind

Sound part声符shēngfú

相

相xiāng想xiǎng

Same sound today

想 has 心 (heart, mind) below 相 (to look at); the shape shows the mind looking at or considering something, and 相 also gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Thinking & Cognition

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.