TongTong
Sign in

似曾相识 (sì céng xiāng shí) — to feel a sense of déjà vu; to seem familiar (as if previously encountered)

Definition

Literally 'seem to have met before': a literary phrase for the feeling that something is familiar, like déjà vu. Often used in writing about memory or encounters.

phrase
to feel a sense of déjà vuto seem familiar (as if previously encountered)

Examples

  • 似曾相识，。
    Wǒ dì yī cì jiàn dào tā jiù jué de sì céng xiāng shí, hǎo xiàng zài nǎ lǐ jiàn guò.
    The first time I met her, I had a sense of déjà vu, as if I had seen her somewhere before.
  • 似曾相识。
    Zhè zhǒng sì céng xiāng shí de gǎn jué ràng wǒ xīn lǐ hěn bù ān.
    This feeling of déjà vu makes me uneasy.
  • ，似曾相识。
    Zǒu jìn nà ge lǎo fáng zi, wǒ dùn shí gǎn dào wú bǐ sì céng xiāng shí.
    Walking into that old house, I instantly felt an overwhelming sense of déjà vu.

Origin

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
亻Written in full as人rénhuman
Sound part声符shēngfú
以
以yǐ似sì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

似 pairs 亻 (human) with 以, which gives the sound.

Open 似 →

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

曾 was first drawn as a cooker for steaming food. The 'once' meaning came from borrowing the sound, so the picture does not directly show that meaning.

Open 曾 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

In 相, 目 is an eye and 木 is a tree, showing an eye looking at a tree; this originally meant “to observe.”

Open 相 →

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 識; 识 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánsay
Sound part声符shēngfú
戠
戠zhí識zhì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 識 pairs 言 (say) with 戠 as a sound part; the simplified 识 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 识 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Idioms & Set PhrasesThinking & Cognition

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.