爱国心 (ài guó xīn) — patriotic feeling; patriotism

Definition

Literally 'love-country-heart': the inner feeling of patriotism, not an action. Often interchangeable with 爱国, but emphasizes the personal emotion.

noun

patriotic feelingpatriotism

Examples

爱国心。
Tā yǒu zhe qiáng liè de ài guó xīn.
He has a strong patriotic feeling.
爱国心。
Zhè zhǒng ài guó xīn jī lì zhe rén men wèi guó jiā fèn dòu.
This patriotic feeling inspires people to strive for the country.
爱国心。
Tā de ài guó xīn gǎn dòng le suǒ yǒu rén.
His patriotic feeling moved everyone.

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.

爱国love country

爱àilove国guócountry

动宾Verb + object

心xīnheart

爱 and 国 express loving the country, and 心 adds the sense of a feeling.

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 愛; 爱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

心心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

旡

旡jì愛ài

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For the traditional form 愛, an older shape paired 心 (heart) with 旡 as its sound part; later a foot-like 夊 was added below. The simplified 爱 is a later variant that replaces the lower part with 友.

Open 爱 →

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 國; 国 is its simplified writing.

囗或國

Meaning part形符xíngfú

囗囗wéiclosure

Sound part声符shēngfú

或

或huò國guó

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 國 uses 囗 to show closure and 或 to give the sound.

Open 国 →