色情 (sè qíng) — pornography; sexual desire (literary) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

色情 covers both the abstract idea of sexual desire and, more commonly, pornographic content/media. Collocates with 内容, 作品, 行业. In the literary sense it is a near-synonym of 性欲 but with a broader, often artistic register.

noun

pornographysexual desire (literary)

Examples

色情。
Zhè ge wǎng zhàn yīn wèi chuán bō sè qíng nèi róng bèi guān bì le.
This website was shut down for spreading pornographic content.
色情。
Gǔ dài wén rén cháng bǎ sè qíng hé ài qíng fēn kāi tǎo lùn.
Ancient literati often discussed sexual desire and love separately.
色情。
Fǎ lǜ duì sè qíng zuò pǐn de chuán bō yǒu yán gé xiàn zhì.
The law imposes strict restrictions on the distribution of pornographic works.

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.

色sèsexual

色 contributes sexuality, while 情 contributes desire or feeling, together meaning sexual desire or pornographic material.

Characters in this word

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

爪爪zhuǎclaw; hand
卩卩jiékneeling person

色 pairs 爪 (a hand) with 卩 (a kneeling person), showing a hand pressing down on the kneeling person.

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

心心xīnheart

Sound part声符shēngfú

青

青qīng情qíng

Same sound today

情 shows 心 (heart) beside 青, which gives the sound. The heart part points to feelings and inner states.

Appears in

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