酗酒 (xù jiǔ) — to drink excessively; to be a heavy drinker | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

酗酒 (xùjiǔ) means 'to drink heavily / excessively' — a formal, written term for habitual heavy drinking, not a single session. It frames alcohol use as harmful, unlike casual words for having a drink.

verb

to drink excessivelyto be a heavy drinker

Examples

酗酒。
Cháng qī xù jiǔ huì yán zhòng sǔn hài jiàn kāng.
Long-term heavy drinking can seriously damage your health.
酗酒。
xù jiǔ Huì pò huài jiā tíng guān xì.
Heavy drinking destroys family relationships.
酗酒。
Nián qīng rén xù jiǔ huì yǐng xiǎng qián tú.
Young people who drink excessively will affect their future.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

酗xùdrink excessively

酒jiǔalcohol

The 酗 conveys excessive drinking and the 酒 is alcohol, so the sense is drinking far too much.

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.

酉凶酗

Meaning part形符xíngfú

酉酉yǒualcohol

Sound part声符shēngfú

凶

凶xiōng酗xù

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

酗 is made of 酉, the alcohol part, and 凶, the part that gives the sound.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

酉

酉yǒu酒jiǔ

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

酒 pairs 酉, the original picture for this word, with 水 (water), added later to distinguish it.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Alcohol & Tobacco 5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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