锐气 (ruì qì) — drive, motivation; aggressiveness, edge

Definition

锐气 is a sharp, forward-pushing 'drive and edge' — the aggressive energy of someone young or at their peak. Pairs naturally with 消磨 (wear away), as the examples show: a resource that fades over time.

noun
drivemotivationaggressivenessedge
Easily confused

Examples

  • 锐气。
    Tā nián qīng shí de ruì qì yǐ jīng xiāo mó dài jìn le.
    The drive he had in his youth has worn away.
  • 锐气，。
    Zhè zhī xīn qiú duì chōng mǎn le ruì qì, yí shàng chǎng jiù zhǔ dòng jìn gōng.
    This new team is full of aggressiveness; they take the initiative to attack as soon as they step onto the field.
  • 锐气。
    Bié ràng shī bài mó diào nǐ de ruì qì.
    Don't let failure wear away your edge.

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.

锐ruìsharp
气qìspirit

锐 gives sharpness, 气 gives spirit, together drive or edge.

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 銳; 锐 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
釒釒jīngold
Sound part声符shēngfú
兌
兌duì銳ruì
Same sound today

The traditional form 銳 pairs 釒, a gold sign, with 兌 as the sound part; the simplified 锐 is a shorthand, so its right side is not the historical sound part.

Open 锐 →

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 氣; 气 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
米米mǐrice
Sound part声符shēngfú
气
气qì氣qì
Same sound today

The traditional form 氣 pairs 米 (rice) with 气, which supplies the sound; the simplified 气 is a later abbreviation.

Open 气 →

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