想

xiǎng

心 + 相

HSK 2.0Level 1

HSK 3.0Level 1

Definitions

xiǎng (verb) to think; to believe; to suppose

xiǎng (verb) to want; to wish

xiǎng (verb) to miss (someone or something)

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 心 represents the meaning and 相 represents the sound.

Semantic: 心 Phonetic: 相

About

想 is a phono-semantic compound: the top component 相 (mutual, observation) serves as the phonetic element, while the heart radical 心 at the bottom marks the character as belonging to the realm of thought and emotion. Originally, it referred to forming mental images or pondering a subject. From this core sense, it developed the modern meanings of thinking about something, wanting to do something, and missing a person or place.

Etymology Hide

Bronze Late Spring and Autumn (~500 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我真的很想你。

Wǒ zhēn de hěn xiǎng nǐ.

I really miss you.

我想去北京。

Wǒ xiǎng qù Běijīng.

I want to go to Beijing.

他在想一个问题。

Tā zài xiǎng yī gè wèntí.

He is thinking about a problem.

你想不想看电影？

Nǐ xiǎng bu xiǎng kàn diànyǐng?

Do you want to watch a movie?

我妈妈想让我学中文。

Wǒ māma xiǎng ràng wǒ xué Zhōngwén.

My mother wants me to learn Chinese.

如果你想去，就得早点出发。

Rúguǒ nǐ xiǎng qù, jiù déi zǎo diǎn chūfā.

If you want to go, you have to leave early.

她一直在想昨天发生的事情。

Tā yìzhí zài xiǎng zuótiān fāshēng de shìqíng.

She has been thinking about what happened yesterday.

尽管他想了很多办法，但还是没有解决问题。

Jǐnguǎn tā xiǎngle hěnduō bànfǎ, dàn háishì méiyǒu jiějué wèntí.

Although he thought of many methods, he still didn't solve the problem.

Related Characters

Component: 心

Component: 相

想