存疑 (cún yí) — to leave a matter open; to suspend judgment; to keep as an unresolved question

Definition

Literary/formal verb meaning to leave something unresolved and hold off judgment until more evidence arrives. Often used in academic, legal, or official writing rather than everyday speech.

verb
to leave a matter opento suspend judgmentto keep as an unresolved question

Examples

  • ，存疑。
    Tā de guān diǎn hái bú què dìng, wǒ men xū yào cún yí.
    His opinion is not yet certain; we need to leave it open.
  • ，。
    Zhè ge wèn tí xiān cún yí gè yí, yǐ hòu zài shuō.
    Let's leave this question open for now, and discuss it later.
  • 存疑，。
    Xué zhě men jué dìng cún yí, děng dài gèng duō zhèng jù.
    The scholars decided to suspend judgment, waiting for more evidence.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

存cúnkeep
疑yídoubt

存 means to keep, and 疑 is the doubt that is retained, yielding suspend judgment.

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
子子zǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
才
才cái存cún
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

存 pairs 子 with 才, which was used for the sound.

Open 存 →

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

  • 大大dàstanding human figure
  • 夂夂zhǐtilted head with open mouth
  • 丨丨gǔncane

疑 depicts a standing figure 大 with a tilted, open-mouthed head 夂 and a cane 丨, a confused person looking around for direction.

Open 疑 →

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