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热心 (rè xīn) — enthusiastic and helpful; warm-hearted

Definition

热心 highlights helpfulness and care for others' needs, often about someone's attitude toward people (a 热心的人). 热情 is broader 'enthusiasm/warmth', 热烈 describes the atmosphere of an event (热烈欢迎).

adjective
enthusiastic and helpfulwarm-hearted

Examples

  • 热心。
    Tā duì péng you hěn rè xīn.
    He is very warm-hearted toward his friends.
  • 热心。
    Zhè wèi rè xīn de yī shēng zǒng shì nài xīn dì kàn bìng.
    This warm-hearted doctor always sees patients patiently.
  • 热心。
    Tā fēi cháng rè xīn dì jiē dài le xīn tóng xué.
    He very warmly received the new classmates.

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.

热rèwarm
心xīnheart

热 means warm and 心 means heart, so the word describes a warm heart, hence enthusiasm.

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 熱; 热 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
灬Written in full as火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
埶
埶yì熱rè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 熱 pairs 埶 with 火 (written as 灬) to show heat, while 埶 gives a sound.

Open 热 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 心 comes from a drawing of a heart, now highly stylized.

Open 心 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Personality & Traits

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