深呼吸 (shēn hū xī) — (noun) deep breathing; (verb) to take a deep br… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

deep breathing

verb

to take a deep breathto breathe deeply

Examples

，深呼吸。
Tā zuò yú jiā de shí hou, huì xiān zuò jǐ cì shēn hū xī.
When she does yoga, she takes a few deep breaths first.
深呼吸。
Yī shēng ràng tā zuò jǐ cì shēn hū xī lái fàng sōng.
The doctor told him to take a few deep breaths to relax.
深呼吸。
Zhè zhǒng shēn hū xī liàn xí duì huǎn jiě yā lì hěn yǒu bāng zhù.
This kind of deep breathing exercise is helpful for relieving stress.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

呼吸breathing

呼hūexhale吸xīinhale

联合Coordinate

深 gives the deep sense, and 呼吸 names the exhaling-inhaling cycle.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐwater

Sound part声符shēngfú

𥥍

𥥍𥥍深shēn

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

深 is built from 氵, the side form of 水 “water”, and 𥥍, which supplies the sound.

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

口乎呼

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

乎

乎hū呼hū

Same sound today

呼 uses 口 (mouth) to show exhaling, calling, or shouting, and 乎 gives the sound.

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

口及吸

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

及

及jí吸xī

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

吸 pairs 口 (mouth) with 及, which gives the sound and relates to grabbing, so the shape suggests grabbing through the mouth.

Appears in

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