心神不定 (xīn shén bú dìng) — feeling uneasy and restless; disturbed; unsettled

Definition

An idiom for being mentally restless and unsettled — typically waiting for news or facing uncertainty. Often paired with 坐立不安 to intensify the feeling.

verb
feeling uneasy and restlessdisturbedunsettled

Examples

  • ，心神不定。
    Tā míng tiān jiù yào miàn shì le, xiàn zài xīn shén bú dìng.
    He has an interview tomorrow, and now he's feeling restless.
  • 心神不定，。
    Zhè jǐ tiān wǒ xīn shén bú dìng, zǒng dān xīn jiā lǐ chū shì.
    These days I've been uneasy, always worried that something might happen at home.
  • ，心神不定，。
    Tā tīng dào zhè ge xiāo xi hòu, xīn shén bú dìng, zuò lì bù ān.
    After hearing this news, she was disturbed and couldn't sit still.

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.

心神mind and spirit
心xīnmind神shénspirit
联合Side by side
不定not settled
不bùnot定dìngsettled
偏正Modifier + head

心神 means mind and spirit, and 不定 says they are not settled.

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
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 →

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

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

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
正
正zhèng定dìng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

定 is built from 宀 and 正, with 正 supplying the sound.

Open 定 →

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