安神 (ān shén) — to soothe the nerves; to calm the mind (especially in Traditional Chinese Medicine)

Definition

Literally 'settle the spirit' — to calm the nerves or quiet an anxious mind. Most often used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (e.g. 安神药 'calming herbs') but also natural in everyday speech about rest and relaxation.

verb
to soothe the nervesto calm the mind (especially in Traditional Chinese Medicine)

Examples

  • 安神。
    Hē yì bēi rè niú nǎi néng ān shén.
    Drinking a glass of warm milk can soothe the nerves.
  • ，。
    Gōng zuò tài máng le, wǒ xū yào ān yí huì r shén.
    Work is too busy; I need to calm my nerves for a while.
  • 安神。
    Zhōng yī yòng zhè ge fāng zi ān shén xiào guǒ hěn hǎo.
    This TCM formula is very effective for calming the mind.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

安āncalm
神shénspirit

“安” means calm and “神” means spirit, together describing soothing the nerves.

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
宀宀mián
Sound part声符shēngfú
女
女nǚ安ān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 安, 宀 sits above a seated 女 on a cushion; 宀 is the meaning part, 女 is the sound part, and the character originally meant sitting at ease.

Open 安 →

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
示示shìgod; deity
Sound part声符shēngfú
申
申shēn神shén
Same sound today

The older form 申 drew lightning, which the ancients regarded as divine; 神 adds 示 (god/deity) to mark that meaning.

Open 神 →

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