神佑 (shén yòu) — divine blessing, divine protection | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literary/religious term for divine protection or blessing, not used in everyday speech. Pair with 的 to modify a noun, as in 神佑的子民 ('the divinely-protected people').

noun

divine blessingdivine protection

Examples

神佑。
Yuàn shén yòu yǔ nǐ tóng zài.
May divine blessing be with you.
神佑。
Zhè zuò gǔ chéng yì zhí shòu dào shén yòu de bǎo hù.
This ancient city has always been under divine protection.
神佑。
Tā men zài qí dǎo zhōng qí qiú shén yòu.
They prayed for divine blessing in their prayers.

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.

“神” (divine) + “佑” (help) names blessing or protection from gods.

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

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.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

亻右佑

Meaning part形符xíngfú

亻Written in full as人rén

Sound part声符shēngfú

右

Same sound today

佑 pairs 亻, written in full as 人, with 右 as its sound part.

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.