浑然不知 (hún rán bù zhī) — to be totally oblivious (to something); to have no idea about something

Definition

浑然不知 means being completely unaware — emphasizes total obliviousness, stronger than 不知道 which is simply 'don't know'. The 浑然 adds a sense of being utterly absorbed or clueless.

verb
to be totally oblivious (to something)to have no idea about something

Examples

  • ，浑然不知。
    Tā zhěng tiān wán yóu xì, duì jiā lǐ fā shēng de shì qing hún rán bù zhī.
    He plays games all day and is completely oblivious to what's happening at home.
  • ，浑然不知。
    Tóng shì men dōu zhī dào le, zhǐ yǒu tā hái hún rán bù zhī.
    All the colleagues already know; only he still has no idea.
  • ，浑然不知。
    Tā chén jìn zài shū lǐ, duì chuāng wài de xuān nào hún rán bù zhī.
    She was immersed in the book, totally oblivious to the noise outside the window.

Origin

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 渾; 浑 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐriver
Sound part声符shēngfú
軍
軍jūn渾hún
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 渾 pairs 氵 (river) with 軍 to give the sound; the simplified 浑 is a later shorthand, and its right side is not the historical component.

Open 浑 →

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
火火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
肰
肰rán然rán
Same sound today

然 is made from 肰, which gives the sound, and 火, which shows fire, matching the old sense 'to burn'.

Open 然 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The picture in 不 originally showed a flower’s calyx; the “no” sense came later from a related character, not from this picture.

Open 不 →

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

An early form of 知 showed 大 (adult), 口 (mouth), and 子 (child): an adult speaking to a child to pass on knowledge. The 子 part was dropped, and the 大 part changed shape.

Open 知 →

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