负心 (fù xīn) — to be heartless and unfaithful in love; to betray one's beloved

Definition

Literary verb meaning to be unfaithful or betray a lover — carries strong moral condemnation, far more serious than everyday 'breaking up'. Common in 负心人/负心汉 ('heartless lover') and classical-style writing.

verb
to be heartless and unfaithful in loveto betray one's beloved

Examples

  • 负心，。
    Tā duì nǚ péng you tài fù xīn le, dà jiā dōu hěn shēng qì.
    He was too heartless to his girlfriend, and everyone was angry.
  • ，。
    Tā cóng lái méi yǒu fù guò xīn, shì gè hǎo rén.
    He has never been unfaithful; he's a good person.
  • 负心。
    Nà ge fù xīn rén zuì hòu hòu huǐ le.
    That heartless person regretted it in the end.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

负fùbetray
心xīnheart

The idea of 负 as betraying attaches to 心, the heart, to describe disloyalty.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 負; 负 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 負 combines 人 (person) and 貝 (cowry), with 人 written as ⺈; the simplified 负 is a later abbreviation.

Open 负 →

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

The shape of 心 comes from a drawing of a heart, now highly stylized.

Open 心 →

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