歉疚 (qiàn jiù) — to feel sorry, to have a guilty conscience

Definition

歉疚 describes a lingering, quiet guilt — feeling sorry to oneself, deeper than a simple apology. Unlike 道歉 (to apologize to someone), 歉疚 stays internal and unspoken.

verb
to feel sorryto have a guilty conscience

Examples

  • 歉疚。
    Tā yīn wèi méi néng bāng zhù péng you ér gǎn dào qiàn jiù.
    He felt guilty because he couldn't help his friend.
  • 歉疚。
    Tā duì zì jǐ shuō guò de huà yì zhí xīn cún qiàn jiù.
    She has always felt remorseful about what she said.
  • 歉疚，。
    Zhè jiàn shì ràng wǒ shēn gǎn qiàn jiù, wú fǎ shì huái.
    This matter makes me deeply sorry and unable to let it go.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

歉qiànsorry
疚jiùguilty

歉 (sorry) and 疚 (guilty) stand side by side, giving the sense of remorse.

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
欠欠qiànperson with mouth open
Sound part声符shēngfú
兼
兼jiān歉qiàn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

歉 uses 兼 for its sound; 兼 is drawn as a hand holding two crop plants. It also uses 欠, a person with mouth open, to show feeling hunger after eating.

Open 歉 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

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