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致敬 (zhì jìng) — to salute; to pay tribute to

Definition

致敬 is a formal, public gesture of paying tribute or saluting — used in speeches, dedications, and ceremonies to honor people or achievements. 尊敬 is everyday respect for a person, and 敬礼 is a physical military salute.

verb
to saluteto pay tribute to

Examples

  • 致敬。
    Wǒ men xiàng suǒ yǒu yī hù rén yuán zhì jìng.
    We salute all medical workers.
  • 致敬。
    Zhè bù jì lù piàn xiàng píng fán zhōng de wěi dà zhì jìng.
    This documentary pays tribute to greatness in the ordinary.
  • 致敬。
    Tā xiě le yì piān wén zhāng xiàng lǎo shī zhì jìng.
    He wrote an article to pay homage to his teacher.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

致zhìexpress
敬jìngrespect

致 expresses or conveys, and 敬 is respect, so 致敬 is to express respect.

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
攵Written in full as攴pū
Sound part声符shēngfú
至
至zhì致zhì
Same sound today

致 pairs 至, used for its sound, with 攵, written in full as 攴.

Open 致 →

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

  • 茍茍jìkneeling person or sitting dog
  • 攴攴pūhand holding a stick, authority

敬 is possibly formed from 茍, a kneeling person or sitting dog, and 攴, a hand holding a stick.

Open 敬 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Greetings & Politeness

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