小视 (xiǎo shì) — to look down upon, to despise

Definition

A formal verb meaning 'to look down on, underestimate.' Stronger than 轻视 and written in tone, often paired with 不可 (must not underestimate).

verb

to look down uponto despise

Easily confused

小视。
Bú yào xiǎo shì bié rén de nǔ lì.
Don't look down on others' efforts.
，小视。
Zhè ge wèn tí kàn sì jiǎn dān, dàn bù kě xiǎo shì.
This problem seems simple, but it cannot be underestimated.
小视。
Tā yīn wèi xiǎo shì duì shǒu ér shū le bǐ sài.
He lost the match because he looked down on his opponent.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

小 means small or low, and 视 means to look at, so the word conveys looking down on someone.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

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 視; 视 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

見見jiànsee

Sound part声符shēngfú

示

Same sound today

The story is about the traditional form 視: it combines 見, meaning see, with 示, which gives the sound shì.