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时事 (shí shì) — current affairs; current events

Definition

时事 refers to current events and affairs reported in the news — what is happening in politics, society, etc. right now. 现状 is the broader 'current situation/status quo,' while 局势 and 事态 focus on a developing or tense situation.

noun
current affairscurrent events

Examples

  • ，时事。
    Tā měi tiān kàn xīn wén, liǎo jiě zuì xīn de shí shì.
    He watches the news every day to keep up with the latest current affairs.
  • 时事。
    shí shì Duì wǒ men de shēng huó yǒu hěn dà yǐng xiǎng.
    Current affairs have a big impact on our lives.
  • 时事，。
    Wǒ men yīng gāi duō tǎo lùn shí shì, ér bú shì zhǐ gù zì jǐ.
    We should discuss current affairs more instead of only caring about ourselves.

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.

时shícurrent
事shìaffairs

时 current and 事 affairs together mean current events.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →

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

In 事, 又 is a hand and 中 is a flagpole with a drum; holding a flag in hand depicts performing a job.

Open 事 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6

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