TongTong
Sign in

意义 (yì yì) — significance, importance; meaning, sense

Definition

意义 (yìyì) emphasizes 'significance' — the deeper importance or value of something, beyond just what it literally says. Use 意思 for everyday 'meaning' or 'opinion'; use 含义 for implied or hidden meaning.

noun
significanceimportancemeaningsense
Measure word · 个
Easily confused

Examples

  • 意义？
    Zhè ge jué dìng yǒu shén me yì yì?
    What significance does this decision have?
  • 意义？
    Rén shēng de yì yì shì shén me?
    What is the meaning of life?
  • 意义。
    Zhè ge cí de yì yì hěn shēn.
    The meaning of this word is profound.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

意yìmeaning
义yìmeaning

意 and 义 both carry meaning, so together they give significance.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 意 →

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 義; 义 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
羊羊yáng
Sound part声符shēngfú
我
我wǒ義yì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 義 has 我 giving the sound and 羊 meaning good or auspicious; the simplified 义 is a later abbreviation.

Open 义 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 51000 Most Frequent Chinese WordsAbstract Concepts2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 5 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.