神经质 (shén jīng zhì) — nervousness | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A noun for an anxious, high-strung temperament — not just 'feeling nervous right now' (紧张) but a person's general tendency to be jumpy, irritable, and overreact.

noun

nervousness

Examples

神经质。
Tā zǒng shì biǎo xiàn dé yǒu xiē shén jīng zhì.
He always shows some nervousness.
神经质。
Zhè zhǒng shén jīng zhì ràng tā wú fǎ fàng sōng.
This kind of nervousness makes her unable to relax.
神经质。
Kǎo shì qián de shén jīng zhì shì hěn zhèng cháng de.
Nervousness before exams is very normal.

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.

神经nerves

神shénspirit经jīngmeridian

联合Coordinate

质zhìquality

神经 names the nerves, and 质 adds a quality, giving a nervous quality.

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

示示shìgod; deity

Sound part声符shēngfú

申

申shēn神shén

Same sound today

The older form 申 drew lightning, which the ancients regarded as divine; 神 adds 示 (god/deity) to mark that meaning.

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 經; 经 is its simplified writing.

糹巠經

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糹Written in full as糸mìsilk; thread

Sound part声符shēngfú

巠

巠jīng經jīng

Same sound today

The traditional form 經 combines 糹 (silk; thread) with 巠, which gives the sound.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 質; 质 is its simplified writing.

斦貝質

斦斦yín
貝貝bèi

The traditional form 質 is made up of 貝 and 斦; this describes 質, not the simplified 质.

Appears in

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