喜欢 (xǐ huan) — to like, to be fond of | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

The everyday word for 'to like'. Weaker than 爱 ('love') and more neutral than 喜爱, which feels warmer or stronger.

verb

to liketo be fond of

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

喜xǐlike; joy

欢huānjoy; like

喜 and 欢 both convey joy or liking, so it means to like.

Characters in this word

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

壴口喜

喜 combines 壴, a drum, with 口, a mouth.

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 歡; 欢 is its simplified writing.

雚欠歡

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

雚

雚guàn歡huān

Same sound today

The traditional form 歡 uses 雚 for the sound and 欠 for the meaning; the simplified 欢 is a later shorthand, so its parts do not carry that history.

Appears in