珍惜 (zhēn xī) — to cherish, to treasure, to value

Definition

珍惜 means to cherish — usually emotions, relationships, or rare opportunities, with a sense of emotional warmth. 重视 is cooler and more cognitive ('to attach importance to'), while 爱惜 adds the idea of careful, sparing use.

verb
to cherishto treasureto value
Easily confused

Examples

  • 珍惜。
    Tā fēi cháng zhēn xī hé jiā rén de gǎn qíng.
    He deeply cherishes the bond with his family.
  • 珍惜。
    Qǐng zhēn xī shēn biān de péng you.
    Please cherish the friends around you.
  • 珍惜。
    Wǒ men yào zhēn xī zhè cì nán dé de jī huì.
    We need to cherish this rare opportunity.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

珍zhēnprecious
惜xīcherish

珍惜 combines 珍 as precious and 惜 as cherish to mean treat something as precious and keep it dear.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
玉玉yù
Sound part声符shēngfú
㐱
㐱㐱珍
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

珍 pairs 玉, a jade or gem, with 㐱, which gives the sound; the 玉 part fits its early meaning of a rich gemstone.

Open 珍 →

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
忄Written in full as心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
昔
昔xī惜⁰xī
Same sound today

惜 has 忄, the heart, and 昔, which gives the sound. 昔 also points to the past or an ending, so the feeling is about something past.

Open 惜 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Emotions & Feelings

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