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裂痕 (liè hén) — crack (on a surface); fissure; rift (in a relationship); division

Definition

裂痕 is a 'crack/rift' that often carries a figurative sense — damage to a relationship, trust, or unity, beyond a mere physical break. Unlike 裂缝 (focused on physical cracks) or 缝 (a narrow seam/gap), 裂痕 emphasizes the visible mark left by a split.

noun
crack (on a surface)fissurerift (in a relationship)division
Measure word · 道

Examples

  • 裂痕。
    Qiáng shàng nà dào liè hén shì dì zhèn zào chéng de.
    That crack on the wall was caused by the earthquake.
  • 裂痕，。
    Tā men zhī jiān de liè hén yuè lái yuè shēn, zuì hòu zhōng yú fēn kāi le.
    The rift between them grew deeper and deeper, and finally they separated.
  • 裂痕
    Cí qì shàng yǒu yí dào xì xiǎo de liè hén
    There is a tiny crack on the porcelain.

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.

裂liècrack
痕hénmark

A 裂 (crack) mark (痕): a visible trace of cracking.

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
衣衣yīclothes
Sound part声符shēngfú
列
列liè裂liè
Same sound today

裂 combines 衣 (clothes) with 列 for the sound. The picture of 列 shows bones cut by a blade and lined up, and the whole writes the idea of cutting and tearing clothes.

Open 裂 →

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
疒疒nè
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn痕hén
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

痕 pairs 疒 with 艮: 疒 gives the sense, and 艮 gives the sound.

Open 痕 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Abstract Concepts

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