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粗心 (cū xīn) — careless, thoughtless

Definition

粗心 means 'careless' — typically about mistakes in tasks (writing, driving, work), not about being rude. Its direct opposite is 细心 ('careful'); 草率 is stronger, suggesting rashness.

adjective
carelessthoughtless

Examples

  • 粗心。
    Tā cū xīn fàn le yí gè cuò wù.
    He made a mistake because of carelessness.
  • 粗心。
    Kāi chē de shí hou bù néng cū xīn.
    You can't be careless when driving.
  • 粗心。
    Nǐ xiě zuò yè tài cū xīn le.
    You are too careless when doing homework.

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.

粗cūrough
心xīnmind

粗 describes roughness and 心 the mind; a rough mind acts carelessly.

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
米米mǐrice
Sound part声符shēngfú
且
且qiě粗cū
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

粗 pairs 米 (rice), which points to its meaning, with 且, which gives a clue to its sound.

Open 粗 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 心 comes from a drawing of a heart, now highly stylized.

Open 心 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 4HSK 2.0 Level 4Personality & Traits

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