揣摩 (chuǎi mó) — to analyze; to try to figure out; to fathom | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

揣摩 means to try to figure out something hidden, like another's thoughts or intentions — more about guessing motives than hard analysis. Unlike 分析, which dissects facts with logic, 揣摩 focuses on reading people.

verb

to analyzeto try to figure outto fathom

Examples

揣摩。
Tā yì zhí zài chuǎi mó lǎo bǎn de zhēn shí xiǎng fǎ.
He's been trying to fathom his boss's true thoughts.
揣摩，。
Jīng guò fǎn fù chuǎi mó, wǒ zhōng yú míng bai le zhè dào tí de jiě tí sī lù.
After repeatedly analyzing, I finally understood the approach to solve this problem.
揣摩。
Xiě wén zhāng shí yào chuǎi mó dú zhě de xīn lǐ cái néng dǎ dòng rén xīn.
When writing an article, you need to consider the reader's psychology to move people.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

揣chuāiguess/estimate

摩móexamine/study

The meanings of 揣 and 摩 both involve thinking over something, together giving the sense of fathoming.

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

手手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

耑

耑zhuān揣chuǎi

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

揣 combines 手, a hand, with 耑, which gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

麻手摩

Meaning part形符xíngfú

手手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

麻

麻má摩mó

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

摩 combines 手 (hand) with 麻; the hand part relates to the meaning, and 麻 gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Thinking & Cognition

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