叹服 (tàn fú) — to gasp in admiration, to be deeply impressed and acknowledge

Definition

叹 (tàn) literally means to sigh or gasp, so 叹服 means to gasp in admiration and fully acknowledge someone's skill or achievement. More emphatic than 佩服 (merely 'admire') — it conveys being truly impressed.

verb
to gasp in admiration, to be deeply impressed and acknowledge
Easily confused

Examples

  • 叹服。
    Tā de qín jì lìng rén tàn fú.
    His piano skills make people gasp in admiration.
  • 叹服。
    Guān zhòng wú bù wéi tā de biǎo yǎn suǒ tàn fú.
    The audience was universally in awe of her performance.
  • 叹服。
    Wǒ bù dé bú tàn fú tā de yǒng qì hé yì lì.
    I can't help but admire his courage and perseverance.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

叹tànexclaim
服fúbe convinced

叹 (exclaim) and 服 (be convinced) together express deep admiration.

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 嘆; 叹 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 叹 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words it is 嘆; in others it is 歎.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
歎
歎tàn嘆tàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 嘆 pairs 口 (mouth) with 歎 as the sound part; it shows a mouth letting out a sigh.

Open 叹 →

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
凡凡fántray
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠬝
𠬝𠬝服fú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 服, the part 𠬝 was the original picture for 'to subdue'; the added left part 凡, a tray, later changed shape.

Open 服 →

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