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睡 (shuì) — to sleep

Definition

The base verb 'to sleep.' At HSK 1 you will usually meet it as 睡觉; on its own it emphasizes the act of sleeping (睡了八个小时) rather than lying down, which is 躺.

verb
to sleep
Easily confused

Examples

  • 睡。
    Wǒ wǎn shàng shí diǎn shuì.
    I sleep at ten p.m.
  • 睡。
    Tā shuì le bā gè xiǎo shí.
    He slept for eight hours.
  • 睡？
    Nǐ shuì hǎo le ma?
    Did you sleep well?

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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

睡 combines 目, an eye, with 垂, which gives its sound.

Grammar

Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 1500 Most Frequent Chinese Words1000 Most Frequent Chinese WordsDaily Routine2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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