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醒目 (xǐng mù) — eye-catching, striking (visually)

Definition

Used for visual design — signs, colors, fonts — that grabs the eye. Unlike 显眼 (just standing out), 醒目 emphasizes deliberate, striking effect. 抢眼 is similar but more about visual impact on people.

adjective
eye-catchingstriking (visually)

Examples

  • 醒目，。
    Zhè ge shāng diàn de zhāo pai fēi cháng xǐng mù, hěn yuǎn jiù néng kàn jiàn.
    This store's sign is very eye-catching; you can see it from far away.
  • 醒目。
    Tā jīn tiān chuān le yí jiàn yán sè xǐng mù de wài tào.
    She wore a coat in a striking color today.
  • 醒目。
    Shè jì shī yòng xǐng mù de zì tǐ lái tū chū biāo tí.
    The designer used eye-catching fonts to highlight the title.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

醒xǐngwake
目mùeye

醒 means wake and 目 means eye; together they suggest eye-catching.

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
酉酉yǒualcohol
Sound part声符shēngfú
星
星xīng醒xǐng
Same sound today

醒 combines 酉, which stands for alcohol, with 星, which gives the sound.

Open 醒 →

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

目 began as a drawing of a human eye, turned sideways.

Open 目 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Appearance

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