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花心 (huā xīn) — (figurative) a person who is unfaithful or fickle in love; womanizer; player; (literal) center of a flower; stamen / pistil

Definition

Literally 'flower center,' but as a noun describing a person it means fickle or unfaithful in love — 'a player, a womanizer.' Usually said about men, and carries a strong moral judgment.

noun
(figurative) a person who is unfaithful or fickle in lovewomanizerplayer(literal) center of a flowerstamen / pistil

Examples

  • ，花心。
    Tā kàn qǐ lái hěn lǎo shi, qí shí shì gè huā xīn.
    He looks honest, but he's actually a player.
  • 花心。
    huā xīn De nán rén bù zhí dé xìn rèn.
    A womanizing man is not worth trusting.
  • 花心，。
    Zhè duǒ huā de huā xīn shì huáng sè de, fēi cháng piào liang.
    The center of this flower is yellow and very beautiful.

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.

花huāflower
心xīncenter

花 (flower) and 心 (center) picture the core of a blossom, extended to a fickle heart.

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
化
化huà花
Same sound today

花 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 化, which gives the sound.

Open 花 →

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
Romance & Marriage

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