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自律 (zì lǜ) — to exercise self-discipline; to be self-disciplined

Definition

自律 is the discipline to control your own behavior and habits over time. It differs from 自主 (making your own decisions), 自立 (supporting yourself financially), and 自理 (handling daily self-care).

verb
to exercise self-disciplineto be self-disciplined

Examples

  • 自律，。
    Tā fēi cháng zì lǜ, měi tiān liù diǎn qǐ chuáng yùn dòng.
    He is very self-disciplined and gets up at six every day to exercise.
  • ，自律。
    Yào xiǎng xué hǎo yì mén yǔ yán, bì xū xué huì zì lǜ.
    If you want to learn a language well, you must learn self-discipline.
  • ，自律，。
    Gōng zuò zài máng, wǒ yě bǎo chí zì lǜ de xí guàn, cái néng bú duàn jìn bù.
    No matter how busy work is, I maintain the habit of self-discipline to keep improving.

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.

自zìself
律lǜdiscipline

自 (self) specifies the kind of 律 (discipline), giving self-regulation.

Characters in this word

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

自 originally drew a nose. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write 自, so the picture and the meaning are unrelated.

Open 自 →

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
彳彳chì
Sound part声符shēngfú
聿
聿yù律lǜ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

律 puts 彳 beside 聿: 彳 is the part tied to the meaning, and 聿 is the part tied to the sound.

Open 律 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Personality & Traits

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