辛辣 (xīn là) — spicy, hot (of taste); pungent (of smell); hars…

Definition

adjective

spicyhot (of taste)pungent (of smell)harshbiting (of criticism or satire)

Examples

辛辣，。
Zhè dào cài de wèi dào hěn xīn là, wǒ bú tài xí guàn.
The taste of this dish is very spicy; I'm not used to it.
辛辣。
Kōng qì zhōng mí màn zhe yì gǔ xīn là de xiāng liào wèi.
A pungent smell of spices filled the air.
辛辣。
Tā de wén zhāng duì shí zhèng jìn xíng le xīn là de pī píng.
His article gave a harsh criticism of current politics.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

辛xīnpungent

辣làhot

辛 (pungent) and 辣 (hot) together give a biting taste.

Characters in this word

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

The oldest forms of 辛 drew a newly grown tree shoot. The shape was later also read as a sharp marking tool, but that reading may come from confusing it with another character.

Open 辛 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

辛束辣

Meaning part形符xíngfú

辛辛xīn

Sound part声符shēngfú

束

剌là辣là

Same sound today

辣 is built from 辛, which carries the meaning, and 束, written in full as 剌, which carries the sound.

Open 辣 →

Appears in