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心事重重 (xīn shì chóng chóng) — to be weighed down with worries; to have a troubled mind

Definition

A fixed idiom meaning deeply weighed down by worries or cares, used to describe someone's visible troubled state. Suggests the worry is heavy and ongoing, not a single passing concern.

idiom
to be weighed down with worriesto have a troubled mind

Examples

  • 心事重重，。
    Tā zuì jìn zǒng shì xīn shì chóng chóng, lián fàn dōu chī bú xià.
    He's been weighed down with worries lately, to the point that he can't even eat.
  • 心事重重，。
    Kàn tā xīn shì chóng chóng de yàng zi, yí dìng yǒu shén me fán xīn shì.
    Judging from her troubled look, she must have something bothering her.
  • 心事重重，。
    Bié zǒng shì xīn shì chóng chóng de, shuō chū lái wǒ men bāng nǐ fēn dān.
    Don't always be so weighed down with worries; tell us and we'll help you share the burden.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

心事worries
心xīnheart事shìmatters
偏正Modifier + head
重重many layers
重zhònglayer重zhònglayer
重叠Reduplication

心 is heart, 事 is matters, and the repeated 重 suggests many layers; together they mean worries weighing heavily.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 心 comes from a drawing of a heart, now highly stylized.

Open 心 →

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

In 事, 又 is a hand and 中 is a flagpole with a drum; holding a flag in hand depicts performing a job.

Open 事 →

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
人人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
東
東dōng重zhòng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

重 developed from a picture of a man carrying a bag, with 人 for the man and 東 for the bag; a later ground element was folded into the form.

Open 重 →

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
人人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
東
東dōng重zhòng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

重 developed from a picture of a man carrying a bag, with 人 for the man and 東 for the bag; a later ground element was folded into the form.

Open 重 →
Appears in
Emotions & FeelingsIdioms & Set Phrases

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