TongTong
Sign in

自责 (zì zé) — to blame oneself

Definition

自责 (zì zé) means to blame yourself — an inward, self-directed sense of guilt, unlike 责怪/责备, which are directed at someone else. Pairs naturally with 反省, the act of reflecting on one's own mistakes.

verb
to blame oneself

Examples

  • 自责。
    Tā yīn wèi kǎo shì bù jí gé ér zì zé.
    He blamed himself for failing the exam.
  • 自责，。
    Bié zài zì zé le, nǐ yǐ jīng jìn lì le.
    Don't blame yourself anymore — you've done your best.
  • 自责，。
    Tā zǒng shì yīn wèi xiǎo shì zì zé, ràng zì jǐ hěn lèi.
    She always blames herself over small things, which makes her exhausted.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

自zìoneself
责zéblame

自 means oneself, and 责 means blame, so the meaning is blaming oneself.

Characters in this word

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

自 originally drew a nose. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write 自, so the picture and the meaning are unrelated.

Open 自 →

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 責; 责 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèicowry; money
Sound part声符shēngfú
朿
朿cì責zé
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 責 pairs 貝, cowry/money, with 朿 as the sound part; the simplified 责 is a later shorthand.

Open 责 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Emotions & Feelings

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