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消遣 (xiāo qiǎn) — to while away time; to pass the time; to make fun of; to tease

Definition

消遣 has two senses: as a verb it means to pass time pleasurably, like 娱乐 but more about a personal pastime. As 'to make fun of' (e.g. 别拿我消遣) it's casual teasing, milder than 取笑 or 嘲弄.

verb
to while away timeto pass the timeto make fun ofto tease

Examples

  • 消遣。
    Tā xǐ huan yòng tīng yīn yuè lái xiāo qiǎn.
    He likes to while away time by listening to music.
  • 消遣！
    Bié ná wǒ xiāo qiǎn le!
    Don't make fun of me!
  • 消遣。
    Zhōu mò tā cháng cháng qù diào yú xiāo qiǎn.
    He often goes fishing to pass the time on weekends.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

消xiāopass away
遣qiǎnsend away

消 and 遣 both suggest getting rid of time, together meaning to while away time.

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
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
肖
肖xiào消xiāo
Same sound today

消 has 氵 (water) beside 肖. The water part connects to putting out or making something vanish, and 肖 gives the sound.

Open 消 →

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

The old form showed two hands directing an army, meaning to send or dispatch; the modern 遣 adds a walking part.

Open 遣 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Hobbies & Pastimes

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