惜

xī

忄 + 昔

Definitions

xī (verb) to cherish; to treasure

xī (verb) to begrudge; to be reluctant to part with

xī (verb) to pity; to feel sorry for

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 忄 represents the meaning and 昔 represents the sound.

About

惜 conveys feelings of cherishing, valuing, pity, or regret toward a situation or object. As a phono-semantic compound, its left side features the vertical heart radical (忄), placing it within the semantic domain of human emotion and sentiment. The right component, 昔, provides the phonetic element and means 'past' or 'former times'. This phonetic part may suggest an emotional link to things that have passed or a wish to hold onto transient moments, reinforcing the character's sense of reluctance to lose or waste something valued.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我们要珍惜时间。

Wǒmen yào zhēnxī shíjiān.

We should cherish time.

这本书很可惜丢了。

Zhè běn shū hěn kěxī diū le.

It's a pity that this book was lost.

他非常爱惜自己的玩具。

Tā fēicháng àixī zìjǐ de wánjù.

He takes great care of his toys.

大家对她的离开感到惋惜。

Dàjiā duì tā de líkāi gǎndào wǎnxī.

Everyone felt sorry for her departure.

我们在车站惜别。

Wǒmen zài chēzhàn xībié.

We parted reluctantly at the station.

他从不吝惜赞美之词。

Tā cóng bù lìnxī zànměi zhī cí.

He never stints on words of praise.

虽然可惜，但我们必须放弃。

Suīrán kěxī, dàn wǒmen bìxū fàngqì.

Although it's a pity, we must give up.

鉴于过去的不幸，我们更应珍惜当下的幸福。

Jiànyú guòqù de bùxìng, wǒmen gèng yīng zhēnxī dāngxià de xìngfú.

In view of past misfortunes, we should cherish present happiness even more.

Related Characters

Component: 忄

Component: 昔

惜