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感觉 (gǎn jué) — (noun) feeling, sensation; (verb) to feel, to perceive

Definition

As a noun, 感觉 means a physical 'sensation' or 'feeling' (tiredness, strangeness). As a verb, it means 'to feel' something; compared to 觉得 it's slightly more physical/concrete, while 感到 is more for emotions.

noun
feelingsensation
verb
to feelto perceive

Examples

  • 感觉。
    Wǒ gǎn jué jīn tiān yǒu diǎn lèi.
    I feel a bit tired today.
  • 感觉。
    Zhè zhǒng gǎn jué hěn qí guài.
    This feeling is very strange.
  • 感觉？
    Nǐ gǎn jué zhè ge jì huà zěn me yàng?
    What do you think of this plan?

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

感gǎnfeel
觉juéperceive

Feel 感 and perceive 觉 together build a sensation or feeling.

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
咸
咸xián感gǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

感 pairs 咸, which gives the sound, with 心, the heart, for feeling.

Open 感 →

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 覺; 觉 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
見見jiànsee
Sound part声符shēngfú
𦥯
𦥯𦥯覺jué
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 覺 pairs 見, a part that means see, with 𦥯, a part that gives the sound; simplified 觉 is a later abbreviation.

Open 觉 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 4500 Most Frequent Chinese WordsHSK 2.0 Level 41000 Most Frequent Chinese WordsSenses2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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