谢意 (xiè yì) — gratitude | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A formal, written-style noun for 'gratitude' or 'thanks,' used in polite expressions like 请接受我们的谢意. Contrast with 感谢, which is more common and works as both a noun and a verb.

noun

gratitude

Examples

谢意。
Qǐng jiē shòu wǒ men zuì chéng zhì de xiè yì.
Please accept our most sincere gratitude.
谢意。
Tā xiě le yì fēng xìn yǐ biǎo dá tā de xiè yì.
He wrote a letter to express his gratitude.
谢意。
Zhè fèn lǐ wù dài biǎo le wǒ de xīn yì hé xiè yì.
This gift represents my feelings and gratitude.

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.

意yìfeeling

谢 gives the thanks, and 意 gives the feeling behind it.

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 謝; 谢 is its simplified writing.

言射謝

Meaning part形符xíngfú

言言yánword; speech

Sound part声符shēngfú

射

射shè謝xiè

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 謝 pairs 言 (word; speech) with 射, which gives the sound. The simplified 谢 is a written form of this character.

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Appears in

Emotions & Feelings

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