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喘气 (chuǎn qì) — to pant, to gasp (from exertion); to catch one's breath, to take a breather

Definition

A vivid verb for the heavy, audible breathing of being out of breath — from running, exertion, or emotion. Used both for the panting action and for pausing to recover one's breath.

verb
to pantto gasp (from exertion)to catch one's breathto take a breather

Examples

  • ，喘气。
    Tā pǎo dé tài kuài, yì zhí zài chuǎn qì.
    He ran too fast and kept panting.
  • 。
    Tā chuǎn le yì kǒu qì cái kāi shǐ shuō huà.
    He took a breath before starting to speak.
  • ，。
    Bié zháo jí, xiān hē kǒu shuǐ chuǎn kǒu qì.
    Don't worry, first drink some water and take a breather.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

喘chuǎnpant
气qìbreath

“喘” shows the panting action, while “气” refers to breath, so the word means to pant or catch one's breath.

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
耑
耑zhuān喘chuǎn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

喘 is made from 口 (mouth) and 耑, which supplies the sound.

Open 喘 →

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 氣; 气 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
米米mǐrice
Sound part声符shēngfú
气
气qì氣qì
Same sound today

The traditional form 氣 pairs 米 (rice) with 气, which supplies the sound; the simplified 气 is a later abbreviation.

Open 气 →
Appears in
HSK 2.0 Level 6Illness & Symptoms

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