爱神 (ài shén) — god of love; Cupid | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

god of loveCupid

Measure word · 个

Examples

，爱神。
Chuán shuō zhōng, ài shén de jiàn néng ràng liǎng gè rén xiāng ài.
According to legend, Cupid's arrow can make two people fall in love.
爱神。
Bó wù guǎn lǐ yǒu yì zūn ài shén de diāo xiàng.
There is a statue of the god of love in the museum.
爱神。
Zhè fú huà miáo huì le ài shén yǔ pǔ sài kè de gù shi.
This painting depicts the story of Cupid and Psyche.

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àilove

神shéngod

The “爱” of love and the “神” of a god combine to name the divine being associated with love.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

示示shìgod; deity

Sound part声符shēngfú

申

申shēn神shén

Same sound today

The older form 申 drew lightning, which the ancients regarded as divine; 神 adds 示 (god/deity) to mark that meaning.

Open 神 →

Appears in

Mythology & Folklore