狭义 (xiá yì) — narrow sense, restricted sense | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

狭义 (xiáyì) means 'narrow sense' — the strict or restricted interpretation of a term. It pairs naturally with its opposite 广义 (broad sense) when discussing definitions.

noun

narrow senserestricted sense

Examples

狭义，。
Cóng xiá yì de jiǎo dù kàn, zhè ge wèn tí hěn jiǎn dān.
From the narrow sense perspective, this problem is very simple.
狭义，。
Zài xiá yì shàng, zhè liǎng gè cí de yì si bù tóng.
In the narrow sense, the meanings of these two words are different.
狭义。
Zhè ge shù yǔ de xiá yì zhǐ yì zhǒng tè dìng de fāng fǎ.
The narrow sense of this term refers to a specific method.

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.

狭 means narrow and 义 means sense, so together they denote a restricted sense.

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 狹; 狭 is its simplified writing.

犭夾狹

Meaning part形符xíngfú

犭Written in full as犬quǎndog

Sound part声符shēngfú

夾

夾jiā狹xiá

Same sound today

The traditional form 狹 pairs 犭 (dog) with 夾 as a sound part; the simplified 狭 is a later shorthand.

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 義; 义 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

我

我wǒ義yì

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

The traditional form 義 has 我 giving the sound and 羊 meaning good or auspicious; the simplified 义 is a later abbreviation.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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