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眼色 (yǎn sè) — meaningful glance; wink (used as a signal); (figurative) social perceptiveness; ability to read someone's mood from their facial expressions

Definition

眼色 is the deliberate look you give someone to signal something (often via 使眼色), or the social skill of reading others' moods. 眼神 is the emotion naturally showing in someone's eyes, not a deliberate signal.

noun
meaningful glancewink (used as a signal)(figurative) social perceptivenessability to read someone's mood from their facial expressions

Examples

  • 眼色，。
    Tā duì wǒ shǐ le yí xià yǎn sè, shì yì wǒ bié shuō huà.
    He gave me a glance, signaling me not to speak.
  • 眼色，。
    Zuò mì shū yào yǒu yǎn sè, zhī dào shén me shí hou gāi shuō huà.
    Being a secretary requires social perceptiveness, knowing when to speak.
  • 眼色，。
    Tā yí gè yǎn sè, wǒ jiù míng bai le.
    He gave me a look, and I understood.

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.

眼yǎneye
色sèexpression

The 色 shown by 眼 forms a meaningful glance or signal.

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
目目mùeye
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn眼yǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

眼 combines 目, which is an eye, with 艮, which gives the character's sound.

Open 眼 →

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

  • 爪爪zhuǎclaw; hand
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

色 pairs 爪 (a hand) with 卩 (a kneeling person), showing a hand pressing down on the kneeling person.

Open 色 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Communication & Speech

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