心地 (xīn dì) — one's innate moral character or disposition; heart (as the seat of moral nature)

Definition

Literary noun for a person's innate moral character — 'one's heart/nature', used in writing to praise or judge someone's goodness (e.g., 心地善良).

noun
one's innate moral character or dispositionheart (as the seat of moral nature)

Examples

  • 心地
    Tā xīn dì shàn liáng, duì shuí dōu hěn hǎo.
    He is kind-hearted and treats everyone well.
  • 心地
    Tā xīn dì chún jìng, cóng bú jì jiào dé shī.
    She is pure-hearted and never worries about gain or loss.
  • Yí gè rén xīn dì de hǎo huài, wǎng wǎng néng cóng xíng wéi zhōng kàn chū lái.
    A person's moral nature can often be seen from their behavior.

Origin

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.

xīnheart
ground

心 and 地 combine metaphorically to mean one's inner nature.

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 →

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
earth
Sound part声符shēngfú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

地 is built from 土 (earth) and 也, which gives its sound.

Open 地 →

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