资质 (zī zhì) — aptitude; natural talent; innate ability

Definition

Innate aptitude — the natural ability a person is born with. Unlike 资格 (qualifications earned through credentials or seniority), 资质 is what you're born with; 天赋 is a closer synonym but stresses a special gift.

noun

aptitudenatural talentinnate ability

Examples

资质，。
Zhè hái zi yǒu yīn yuè zī zhì, cóng xiǎo jiù huì tán gāng qín.
This child has a musical aptitude; he could play the piano since he was little.
，资质。
Gōng sī zhāo pìn shí bù jǐn kàn xué lì, gèng kàn zhòng zī zhì.
When recruiting, the company looks not only at education but also at aptitude.
资质，。
zī zhì Gù rán zhòng yào, dàn hòu tiān de nǔ lì yě bù kě quē shǎo.
Aptitude is certainly important, but hard work later on is also indispensable.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

资zīendowment

质zhìquality

资 and 质 both refer to a person's endowment and quality, together meaning natural aptitude.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 資; 资 is its simplified writing.

次貝資

Meaning part形符xíngfú

貝貝bèishell-money

Sound part声符shēngfú

次

次cì資zī

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 資 puts 次 above 貝, a shell-money sign, to write property or resource; 次 supplies the sound. The simplified 资 is a shorthand, so do not treat its parts as historical.

Open 资 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 質; 质 is its simplified writing.

斦貝質