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贺信 (hè xìn) — congratulatory letter; congratulatory message

Definition

A 贺信 is a written letter of congratulations, typically for a formal occasion. Its sibling 贺电 is the same idea sent as a telegram, a medium now mostly historical.

noun
congratulatory lettercongratulatory message
Measure word · 封

Examples

  • 贺信。
    Gōng sī gěi měi wèi yuán gōng fā le yì fēng hè xìn.
    The company sent a congratulatory letter to each employee.
  • 贺信。
    Tā shōu dào le yì fēng lái zì xiào zhǎng de hè xìn.
    He received a congratulatory letter from the principal.
  • 贺信。
    Zhè fēng hè xìn biǎo dá le dà jiā duì tā de zhù fú.
    This congratulatory letter expressed everyone's blessings to him.

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.

贺hècongratulate
信xìnletter

贺 (congratulate) plus 信 (letter) makes a congratulatory letter or message.

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 賀; 贺 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèishellfish money
Sound part声符shēngfú
加
加jiā賀hè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 賀 pairs 貝 (shellfish money) with 加 as a sound part; the simplified 贺 is a later shorthand, not the historical shape.

Open 贺 →

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
言言yánwords
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén信xìn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

信 pairs 人 as the sound part with 言 (words) as the meaning part.

Open 信 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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