此话 (cǐ huà) — these words, this remark

Definition

Literary/formal pronoun meaning 'these words' or 'this remark', used in writing or set phrases like 此话当真 and 此话怎讲. Unlike the plain 这话, 此 sounds bookish and is mostly seen in idiomatic expressions rather than everyday speech.

pronoun
these wordsthis remark

Examples

  • 此话？
    cǐ huà Dàng zhēn?
    Is that really true?
  • 此话？
    cǐ huà Zěn jiǎng?
    What do you mean by that?
  • 此话，。
    Tīng le cǐ huà, tā xīn lǐ hěn bù shū fu.
    After hearing these words, he felt very uncomfortable.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

此 shows 止 (feet) and 人 (person), drawing a person stopping, to mean 'this' or 'here.'

Open 此 →

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 話; 话 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánword
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠯑
𠯑𠯑話huà
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 話, 言 relates to words and 𠯑 gives the sound; the simplified 话 is a shorthand, so its right side is not that sound part.

Open 话 →

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