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文学 (wén xué) — literature

Definition

文学 is 'literature' as an academic or creative field (poems, novels, drama). 语文 covers language and literature together, especially as a school subject; 文艺 is 'literature and art' as cultural activity.

noun
literature
Measure word · 种

Examples

  • 文学。
    Tā duì zhōng guó xiàn dài wén xué hěn gǎn xìng qù.
    He is very interested in modern Chinese literature.
  • 文学。
    Wǒ měi zhōu dōu qù tīng wén xué jiǎng zuò.
    I go to a literature lecture every week.
  • 文学。
    Zhè běn wén xué zuò pǐn ràng wǒ hěn gǎn dòng.
    This work of literature moved me deeply.

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.

文wénliterature
学xuéstudy

文 (literature) narrows 学 (study) to the study of literature.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The current form 文 shows a man with head, arms, legs, and chest; the tattoo marks on the chest are no longer drawn.

Open 文 →

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 學; 学 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 學 may have used 爻 and 六 for sound, with hands and a child added later; the simplified 学 is a shorthand.

Open 学 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Literature & Poetry

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