谓 (wèi) — (bound form) to call, to name, to designate; (bound form) predicate (in grammar)
Definition
A classical/literary bound form, mostly seen in 所…的 ('so-called') and in grammar terms like 谓语 (predicate). It's not used on its own in modern spoken Chinese.
bound form
to callto nameto designatepredicate (in grammar)
Easily confused
- 请qǐnglook-aliketo ask politely, to request
- 位wèisound-alike(classifier, polite) for people
- 喂wèisound-alike(interjection) hey! hello? (used to attract attention or answer a phone call)
- 喂wèisound-alike(interjection) hello? (used to answer the phone)
- 未wèisound-alikenot yet; have not; did not (formal/literary negation placed before a verb)
- 味wèisound-aliketaste, flavor
Examples
- ，。Suǒ wèi de xìng fú, zhǐ shì biǎo miàn xiàn xiàng.So-called happiness is just a surface phenomenon.
- 。wèi Yǔ shì jù zi zhōng shuō míng zhǔ yǔ de bù fen.The predicate is the part of a sentence that explains the subject.
- ，。Suǒ wèi de zì yóu, bú shì suí xīn suǒ yù.So-called freedom is not doing whatever you want.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 謂; 谓 is its simplified writing.
The traditional form 謂 pairs 言, which marks speech, with 胃 as a sound component; the simplified 谓 is a later abbreviation.
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