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吸引 (xī yǐn) — to attract, to appeal to, to fascinate

Definition

General neutral word for attracting interest, attention, or people. Use it for both positive and negative contexts; 诱惑 and 诱人 imply temptation, and 招 is often negative (provoke) or used for recruiting.

verb
to attractto appeal toto fascinate

Examples

  • 吸引。
    Zhè ge diàn yǐng hěn xī yǐn rén.
    This movie is very attractive.
  • 吸引。
    Zhè jiā diàn de shāng pǐn xī yǐn le hěn duō gù kè.
    The products of this store attracted many customers.
  • 吸引。
    Tā de shēng yīn hěn xī yǐn wǒ.
    His voice attracts me very much.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

吸xīabsorb
引yǐndraw

吸引 joins 吸 (absorb) and 引 (draw), suggesting pulling attention or interest toward something.

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kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
及
及jí吸xī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

吸 pairs 口 (mouth) with 及, which gives the sound and relates to grabbing, so the shape suggests grabbing through the mouth.

Open 吸 →

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

  • 弓弓gōngbow
  • 丿丿piěindicatory stroke

引 is made from 弓, a bow, and 丿, a short slant stroke added at the place where the string is pulled, marking the action of drawing or pulling.

Open 引 →
Appears in
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