共识 (gòng shí) — consensus, common understanding

Definition

noun

consensuscommon understanding

共识。
Wǒ men xū yào dá chéng gòng shí.
We need to reach a consensus.
，共识。
Zài zhè ge wèn tí shàng, dà jiā hái méi yǒu xíng chéng gòng shí.
On this issue, everyone has not yet formed a consensus.
，共识。
Jīng guò tǎo lùn, wǒ men zhōng yú dá chéng le gòng shí.
After discussion, we finally reached a consensus.

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.

识shíunderstanding

共 (common) and 识 (understanding) combine to mean an understanding held together by people.

Characters in this word

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

共 shows 廾, two hands, holding up an object. That object was written 口 and later became the 廿-like top.

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.

言戠識

Meaning part形符xíngfú

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.

Appears in