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经历 (jīng lì) — (verb) to experience; to go through; (noun) experience

Definition

经历 (jīnglì) covers both the verb 'to go through' and the noun 'experience' (something that happened to you). Don't confuse it with 经验, which is the skill or knowledge gained from experience, not the event itself.

verb
to experienceto go through
noun
experience
Measure word · 个, 次
Easily confused

Examples

  • 经历。
    Tā jīng lì le hěn duō shì qing.
    He has experienced a lot of things.
  • 经历。
    Zhè shì yí cì nán wàng de jīng lì.
    This is an unforgettable experience.
  • 经历。
    Wǒ cóng lái méi yǒu jīng lì guò zhè me lěng de dōng tiān.
    I have never experienced such a cold winter.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

经jīngpass through
历lìexperience

经 means going through and 历 means experiencing, so together they name passing through events or what one has lived through.

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 經; 经 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mìsilk; thread
Sound part声符shēngfú
巠
巠jīng經jīng
Same sound today

The traditional form 經 combines 糹 (silk; thread) with 巠, which gives the sound.

Open 经 →

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 歷; 历 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 历 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (简历, 经历) it is 歷; in others (日历) it is 曆.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
止止zhǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
厤
厤lì歷lì
Same sound today

The form 歷 pairs 止 with the sound part 厤.

Open 历 →
Appears in
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