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终生 (zhōng shēng) — lifetime; throughout one's life

Definition

终生 is a formal, written word for 'one's whole life,' strongest in serious or lofty contexts. More formal than 一生 and 一辈子; 终身 is near-identical and often interchangeable.

noun
lifetimethroughout one's life

Examples

  • 终生。
    Tā zhōng shēng zhì lì yú huán bǎo shì yè.
    He dedicated his entire life to environmental protection.
  • 终生。
    Zhè běn shū shì tā zhōng shēng de jié jīng.
    This book is the fruit of his lifetime's work.
  • 终生。
    Zhè cì lǚ xíng gěi le tā zhōng shēng nán wàng de huí yì.
    This trip gave him unforgettable memories for life.

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.

终zhōngwhole
生shēnglife

The whole span of life means lifetime or lifelong duration.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 終; 终 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
冬
冬dōng終zhōng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 終 pairs 糸 (a cord) with 冬 as a sound part; the simplified 终 is a later shorthand. An older form showed a knot at the end of a cord.

Open 终 →

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

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Time (Abstract)

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