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思维 (sī wéi) — thought; thinking

Definition

思维 refers to the process or pattern of thinking itself, not a single thought (that's 思想) or a line of reasoning (思路). Often paired with 方式 or 模式 to mean 'way of thinking'.

thoughtthinking

Examples

  • 思维。
    Xué xí xū yào hǎo de sī wéi fāng fǎ.
    Learning requires good thinking methods.
  • 思维。
    Tā de sī wéi hěn qīng xī.
    His thinking is very clear.
  • 思维。
    Wǒ men yào gǎi biàn jiù de sī wéi mó shì.
    We need to change old thinking patterns.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

思sīthink
维wéithink

思 and 维 both point to mental activity, and together they give thinking or a line of thought.

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
囟
囟xìn思sī
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 思, 心 (heart) points to thinking, while the top part is a changed form of 囟, which supplied the sound.

Open 思 →

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 維; 维 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìthread
Sound part声符shēngfú
唯
唯wéi維wéi
Same sound today

In the traditional form 維, 糸 marks a thread meaning and 唯 provides the sound; the simplified 维 is a later shortened shape.

Open 维 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 6Thinking & Cognition

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