鉴赏力 (jiàn shǎng lì) — ability to appreciate (art, literature, etc.); connoisseurship; taste

Definition

鉴赏力 names the cultivated ability to judge what is fine in art, literature, wine, etc. — not just liking something, but having the trained eye to tell good from great.

noun
ability to appreciate (art, literature, etc.)connoisseurshiptaste

Examples

  • 鉴赏力，。
    Tā de jiàn shǎng lì fēi cháng qiáng, duì gǔ diǎn yóu huà yǒu dú dào de jiàn jiě.
    His connoisseurship is very sharp; he has unique insights into classical oil paintings.
  • 鉴赏力，。
    Yào tí gāo wén xué jiàn shǎng lì, bì xū duō dú jīng diǎn zuò pǐn.
    To improve literary appreciation, you must read more classic works.
  • 鉴赏力。
    Zhè kuǎn pú tao jiǔ de jiàn shǎng lì xū yào zhuān yè xùn liàn.
    Appreciating this wine requires professional training.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

鉴赏appreciate
鉴jiànidentify赏shǎngappreciate
联合Side by side
力lìability

鉴, 赏, and 力 combine to mean the ability to appreciate.

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 鑑; 鉴 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal
Sound part声符shēngfú
監
監jiān鑑jiàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 鑑 pairs 金, showing metal, with 監 for sound; the simplified 鉴 is a later abbreviation, not the source of this shape.

Open 鉴 →

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 賞; 赏 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèicowry
Sound part声符shēngfú
商
商shāng賞shǎng
Same sound today

The traditional form 賞 pairs 商 for sound with 貝, a cowry shell; the simplified 赏 is a shorthand.

Open 赏 →

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

力 is drawn as either an arm bending out from the side of the body or a wooden plough.

Open 力 →

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