雅致 (yǎ zhì) — elegant, refined; in good taste | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

雅致 means 'elegant, refined' — used for tasteful decor, dress, or manners. Stronger and more literary than 漂亮; pairs naturally with 大方 (雅致大方).

adjective

elegantrefinedin good taste

Examples

雅致。
Zhè ge fáng jiān bù zhì dé hěn yǎ zhì.
This room is decorated very elegantly.
雅致。
Tā de chuān zhuó shí fēn yǎ zhì dà fāng.
Her outfit is very elegant and graceful.
雅致，。
Tā de yán xíng fēi cháng yǎ zhì, hěn yǒu xiū yǎng.
His speech and behavior are very refined, showing great cultivation.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

雅yǎelegant

致zhìrefined

雅 and 致 both point to elegance and refined taste.

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.

隹牙雅

Meaning part形符xíngfú

隹隹zhuīa short-tailed bird

Sound part声符shēngfú

牙

牙yá雅yǎ

Same sound today

雅 pairs 隹, a short-tailed bird, with 牙 as its sound part; the bird was a rook/crow, and the sense was extended to refined.

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

至攵致

Meaning part形符xíngfú

攵Written in full as攴pū

Sound part声符shēngfú

至

至zhì致zhì

Same sound today

致 pairs 至, used for its sound, with 攵, written in full as 攴.

Appears in

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