酗酒 (xù jiǔ) — to drink excessively; to be a heavy drinker

Definition

酗酒 (xùjiǔ) means 'to drink heavily / excessively' — a formal, written term for habitual heavy drinking, not a single session. It frames alcohol use as harmful, unlike casual words for having a drink.

verb
to drink excessivelyto be a heavy drinker

Examples

  • 酗酒。
    Cháng qī xù jiǔ huì yán zhòng sǔn hài jiàn kāng.
    Long-term heavy drinking can seriously damage your health.
  • 酗酒。
    xù jiǔ Huì pò huài jiā tíng guān xì.
    Heavy drinking destroys family relationships.
  • 酗酒。
    Nián qīng rén xù jiǔ huì yǐng xiǎng qián tú.
    Young people who drink excessively will affect their future.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

酗xùdrink excessively
酒jiǔalcohol

The 酗 conveys excessive drinking and the 酒 is alcohol, so the sense is drinking far too much.

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
酉酉yǒualcohol
Sound part声符shēngfú
凶
凶xiōng酗xù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

酗 is made of 酉, the alcohol part, and 凶, the part that gives the sound.

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
水水shuǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
酉
酉yǒu酒jiǔ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

酒 pairs 酉, the original picture for this word, with 水 (water), added later to distinguish it.

Open 酒 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Alcohol & Tobacco5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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