熟记 (shú jì) — to learn by heart; to memorize

Definition

熟记 means 'memorize thoroughly / learn by heart' — stronger than 记住 (simply remember): 熟记 emphasizes total mastery, not just retention. Typical of study contexts (formulas, texts, vocabulary).

verb
to learn by heartto memorize

Examples

  • 熟记。
    Tā huā le yí gè wǎn shàng shú jì zhè xiē dān cí.
    He spent an evening memorizing these words.
  • 熟记。
    Nǐ bì xū shú jì zhè ge gōng shì cái néng kǎo shì.
    You must memorize this formula to pass the exam.
  • 熟记。
    Lǎo shī yāo qiú wǒ men shú jì zhěng piān kè wén.
    The teacher asked us to learn the whole text by heart.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

熟shúthoroughly
记jìremember

熟 means thoroughly and 记 means remember; together they describe memorizing well.

Characters in this word

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

熟 combines 孰 (cooked; ripe) with 灬 (fire), showing food cooked with fire.

Open 熟 →

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 記; 记 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech; words
Sound part声符shēngfú
己
己jǐ記jì
Same sound today

The traditional form 記 pairs 言 (speech; words) with 己 as a sound part; the simplified 记 is a later shorthand, so its right side is not the historical component.

Open 记 →

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