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满怀 (mǎn huái) — (verb) to have one's heart filled with; to be full of (emotion, confidence, etc.); (verb) to collide head-on; to bump into directly; (noun) one's bosom or heart (the seat of emotions)

Definition

Literally 'full bosom' — a literary verb meaning 'filled with' an emotion (e.g. 满怀信心, parallel to 充满 but more written). As a noun, it also means 'one's heart/bosom' as the seat of feeling. Distinct from the head-on collision sense in the examples.

verb
to have one's heart filled withto be full of (emotion, confidence, etc.)to collide head-onto bump into directly
noun
one's bosom or heart (the seat of emotions)

Examples

  • 。
    Tā mǎn huái xìn xīn dì jiē xià le zhè ge rèn wu.
    He took on this task full of confidence.
  • 满怀。
    Tā de mǎn huái chōng mǎn le duì wèi lái de qī dài.
    Her heart was filled with anticipation for the future.
  • 满怀。
    Nà liàng chē mǎn huái zhuàng shàng le dà shù.
    That car crashed head-on into a big tree.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

满mǎnfill
怀huáibosom

满 “fill” and 怀 “bosom” combine to mean fill the heart.

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 滿; 满 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
㒼
㒼㒼滿mǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 滿 pairs 水, showing water, with 㒼, giving the sound. The simplified 满 is a later shorthand, not the original shape.

Open 满 →

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 懷; 怀 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
褱
褱huái懷huái
Same sound today

The traditional form 懷 uses 心 (heart) to show longing and 褱 for the sound; the simplified 怀 is a later shorthand.

Open 怀 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Emotions & Feelings

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