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绝望 (jué wàng) — to despair; to give up all hope

Definition

绝望 is a strong verb meaning 'to despair' — losing all hope. It is much more intense than 失望 ('to be disappointed'), which describes mild, temporary letdown.

verb
to despairto give up all hope

Examples

  • 绝望，。
    Tā jué wàng le, bù xiǎng zài jì xù xià qù.
    He despaired and didn't want to continue.
  • ，绝望。
    Tīng dào zhè ge xiāo xi, tā chè dǐ jué wàng le.
    Hearing this news, she completely despaired.
  • 绝望，。
    Jí shǐ jué wàng, wǒ men yě bù néng fàng qì.
    Even if we despair, we cannot give up.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

绝juécut off
望wànghope

绝 cut off and 望 hope combine to mean hope is gone.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 絕; 绝 is its simplified writing.

In the traditional form 絕, 刀 (knife) and 幺 (silk) show a knife cutting silk threads. The simplified 绝 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original picture.

Open 绝 →

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

  • 臣臣chéneye
  • 𡈼𡈼𡈼person standing on the ground

望 originally showed 臣 (eye) beside 𡈼 (person standing on the ground): a person standing up and looking off into the distance. Later 月 was added, and the 臣 part became 亡.

Open 望 →
Appears in
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