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关心 (guān xīn) — to care about, to be concerned about

Definition

关心 means to care about someone or something — usually with warmth and active concern, not just opinion. Lighter than 牵挂 (deep worry from afar); stronger than 在乎 (which can mean simply 'to mind').

verb
to care aboutto be concerned about

Examples

  • 关心。
    Wǒ guān xīn nǐ de jiàn kāng.
    I care about your health.
  • 关心。
    Tā zǒng shì guān xīn bié rén.
    She always cares about others.
  • 关心。
    Fù mǔ hěn guān xīn hái zi de xué xí.
    Parents care a lot about their children's studies.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

关guānto be concerned with
心xīnheart

关 (to be concerned with) and 心 (heart) together describe letting something occupy one's heart, hence caring.

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 關; 关 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
門門méndoor
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢇅
𢇅𢇅關guān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 关, the traditional form 關 shows 門 as a door and 𢇅 as two wooden sticks locking it, with ring-like marks on top.

Open 关 →

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

The shape of 心 comes from a drawing of a heart, now highly stylized.

Open 心 →
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