敬献 (jìng xiàn) — to present or offer with great respect (in formal or ceremonial contexts)

Definition

A formal/ceremonial verb meaning 'to present with deep respect' — typically used for gifts, wreaths, or works offered to a person of high status or to a memorial. Far more formal than everyday verbs like 给 or 送.

idiom
to present or offer with great respect (in formal or ceremonial contexts)

Examples

  • ，敬献。
    Zài qīng míng jié, rén men xiàng liè shì mù jìng xiàn huā quān.
    During Qingming Festival, people present wreaths at martyrs' tombs with great respect.
  • 敬献。
    Yì shù jiā jiāng zì jǐ de zuò pǐn jìng xiàn gěi bó wù guǎn.
    The artist presented his work to the museum with great respect.
  • 敬献。
    Dài biǎo tuán xiàng guó wáng jìng xiàn le zhēn guì de lǐ wù.
    The delegation presented precious gifts to the king with great respect.

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.

敬jìngrespectful
献xiànoffer/present

The 敬 'respectful' specifies the manner of 献 'offer/present'.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 茍茍jìkneeling person or sitting dog
  • 攴攴pūhand holding a stick, authority

敬 is possibly formed from 茍, a kneeling person or sitting dog, and 攴, a hand holding a stick.

Open 敬 →

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 獻; 献 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
犬犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
鬳
鬳yàn獻xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 獻 combines 鬳, which gives the sound, with 犬, a dog. The simplified 献 is a later shorthand.

Open 献 →

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