销魂 (xiāo hún) — ecstasy; rapture; overwhelming joy; overwhelmin… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A literary adjective meaning the soul is so shaken by an intense feeling — joy, sorrow, or aesthetic pleasure — that it transcends ordinary emotion.

adjective

ecstasyraptureoverwhelming joyoverwhelming sorrowsoul-crushing grief

Examples

销魂。
Nà shǒu gē de xuán lǜ zhēn shì lìng rén xiāo hún.
The melody of that song is truly soul-stirring.
，销魂。
Lí bié shí de tòng chǔ, jī hū ràng tā xiāo hún.
The pain of parting almost shattered his soul.
，销魂。
Nà zhǒng měi dì gǎn shòu, zú yǐ xiāo hún.
That kind of aesthetic feeling is enough to send one into ecstasy.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

The soul 魂 is said to be melted or lost through 销, expressing rapture or grief.

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 銷; 销 is its simplified writing.

金肖銷

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

肖

肖xiào銷xiāo

Same sound today

The traditional form 銷 pairs 金 (metal) with 肖 as a sound part; simplified 销 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not historical components.

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

云鬼魂

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

云

云yún魂hún(r)

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

魂 is made from 鬼, the ghost component, plus 云, which supplies the sound.

Appears in

Emotions & Feelings

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