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朴实 (pǔ shí) — simple and unpretentious (of a person's character); plain and unsophisticated (of style, design, etc.)

Definition

朴实 describes a person, style, or character that is simple and unpretentious, without flash. It's a richer, more literary word than 朴素, and — unlike 简单 — carries a positive sense of sincerity, not just 'not complicated'.

adjective
simple and unpretentious (of a person's character)plain and unsophisticated (of style, design, etc.)

Examples

  • 朴实。
    Tā shì yí wèi pǔ shí de nóng cūn lǎo jiào shī.
    He is a plain and unpretentious old teacher from the countryside.
  • 朴实。
    Zhè piān xiǎo shuō de yǔ yán fēi cháng pǔ shí zì rán.
    The language of this novel is very simple and natural.
  • 朴实。
    Tā men jiā de zhuāng xiū fēng gé hěn pǔ shí.
    Their home decoration style is very plain and unadorned.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

朴pǔplain
实shísolid/true

朴 (plain) and 实 (solid/true) combine to mean simple and honest.

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
木木mù
Sound part声符shēngfú
卜
卜bǔ朴Piáo
Same sound today

朴 pairs 木, a tree or wood, with 卜, which gives the sound.

Open 朴 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 實; 实 is its simplified writing.

  • 宀宀miánroof
  • 周周zhōucarved jade
  • 貝貝bèishellfish; cowrie

The traditional form 實 has 宀 'roof' above 周 'carved jade' and 貝 'cowrie'; the simplified 实 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical pieces.

Open 实 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Personality & Traits

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