呼吸 (hū xī) — to breathe | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

呼吸 covers the whole act of breathing — both inhale and exhale. Compare with 吸 (in only) and 喘息 (gasping / pausing to rest).

verb

to breathe

Examples

呼吸。
Wǒ men měi tiān dōu yào hū xī xīn xiān kōng qì.
We need to breathe fresh air every day.
，呼吸。
Tā shēng bìng le, hū xī hěn kùn nan.
He is sick and has difficulty breathing.
呼吸。
Yóu yǒng de shí hou yào xué huì zài shuǐ lǐ hū xī.
When swimming, you need to learn to breathe in the water.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

呼hūexhale

吸xīinhale

呼 and 吸 name exhaling and inhaling, together meaning the act of breathing.

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.

口乎呼

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

乎

乎hū呼hū

Same sound today

呼 uses 口 (mouth) to show exhaling, calling, or shouting, and 乎 gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

口及吸

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.

Appears in

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