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自行 (zì xíng) — by oneself, on one's own; voluntarily

Definition

自行 is a formal adverb meaning 'by oneself / voluntarily', used in written or official contexts. 比 自己 more formal and impersonal; 独自 and 单独 focus on physical solitude.

adverb
by oneselfon one's ownvoluntarily

Examples

  • 自行。
    Zhè ge xiàng mù yóu nǐ zì xíng fù zé.
    You are responsible for this project on your own.
  • 自行。
    Tā zì xíng jué dìng cí zhí qù chuàng yè.
    He voluntarily decided to quit his job and start a business.
  • 自行。
    Qǐng zì xíng xuǎn zé nǐ xǐ huan de fāng àn.
    Please choose the plan you like on your own.

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zìby oneself
行xíngact or go

自 marks by oneself and 行 marks acting or going, so it means doing something on one's own.

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 →

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

  • 彳彳chì
  • 亍亍chù

The shape of 行 originally showed a street intersection, even on both sides. Later it became uneven, with 彳 on the left and 亍 on the right.

Open 行 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Abstract Concepts

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