吟诵 (yín sòng) — to chant (classical poetry or texts) in a traditional intoned style; to recite melodiously

Definition

吟诵 (yín sòng) is the traditional art of chanting or reciting classical Chinese poetry and texts with a melodic, musical rhythm — a cultural practice, not casual reading aloud.

verb
to chant (classical poetry or texts) in a traditional intoned styleto recite melodiously

Examples

  • 吟诵。
    Tā cóng xiǎo jiù xǐ huan yín sòng gǔ shī.
    He has liked to chant ancient poems since childhood.
  • 吟诵《》。
    Lǎo shī dài lǐng xué shēng yì qǐ yín sòng 《lún yǔ》.
    The teacher led the students to chant the Analects together.
  • 吟诵。
    yín sòng Shì zhōng guó chuán tǒng wén huà de yí bù fen.
    Chanting classical texts is part of traditional Chinese culture.

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.

吟yínchant
诵sòngrecite

吟诵 joins 吟, chanting, and 诵, reciting, for melodic reading aloud.

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
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
今
今jīn吟yín
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 口 shows it relates to the mouth, and the right part 今 gives a clue to its sound.

Open 吟 →

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 誦; 诵 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
甬
甬yǒng誦sòng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 誦 pairs 言 (words) with 甬 to give the sound; the simplified 诵 is a later shorthand.

Open 诵 →

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