悲叹 (bēi tàn) — to sigh mournfully; to lament

Definition

悲叹 (bēitàn) means 'to sigh mournfully' — expressing grief or regret about something (often fate or the past). Unlike 抱怨, it focuses on sorrow rather than complaint.

verb
to sigh mournfullyto lament

Examples

  • 悲叹。
    Tā bēi tàn zì jǐ de mìng yùn.
    He laments his own fate.
  • ，悲叹。
    Miàn duì shī bài, tā bù jīn bēi tàn.
    Facing failure, she couldn't help sighing mournfully.
  • 悲叹。
    Lǎo rén bēi tàn shí guāng fēi shì.
    The old man lamented the swift passage of time.

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.

悲bēisorrow
叹tànsigh

悲 adds sorrow to 叹, so the sense is to sigh mournfully.

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; thought; emotion
Sound part声符shēngfú
非
非fēi悲bēi
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

悲 pairs 非 as the sound part with 心, the heart/emotion part.

Open 悲 →

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 嘆; 叹 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 叹 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words it is 嘆; in others it is 歎.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
歎
歎tàn嘆tàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 嘆 pairs 口 (mouth) with 歎 as the sound part; it shows a mouth letting out a sigh.

Open 叹 →

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