诚

誠

chéng

成 + 讠

Definitions

chéng (adjective) sincere; honest

chéng (adverb) truly; really

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 讠 represents the meaning and 成 represents the sound. Simplified form of 誠.

Semantic: 讠 Phonetic: 成

About

诚 (the simplified form of 誠) is a phono-semantic compound: 讠 (yán, 'speech') gives the meaning, while 成 (chéng) provides the sound and also means 'accomplish' or 'complete'. This structure evokes words that match reality or lead to fulfilled actions, establishing the core ideas of sincerity and honesty. From there, the meaning broadened to general genuineness and good faith, and it is often used as an adverb meaning 'truly' or 'indeed', reinforcing notions of authenticity and trustworthiness.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

他是一个诚实的人。

Tā shì yī gè chéngshí de rén.

He is an honest person.

做生意要讲诚信。

Zuò shēngyì yào jiǎng chéngxìn.

Doing business requires integrity.

她对我非常真诚。

Tā duì wǒ fēicháng zhēnchéng.

She is very sincere to me.

他诚恳地道歉了。

Tā chéngkěn de dàoqiàn le.

He apologized sincerely.

我诚心诚意地帮助你。

Wǒ chéngxīn chéngyì de bāngzhù nǐ.

I help you with all sincerity.

诚实是美德，但有时很难做到。

Chéngshí shì měidé, dàn yǒushí hěn nán zuò dào.

Honesty is a virtue, but sometimes it's hard to achieve.

如果没有诚信，朋友就会离开你。

Rúguǒ méiyǒu chéngxìn, péngyou jiù huì líkāi nǐ.

If you lack integrity, friends will leave you.

尽管他犯了错误，但他的诚实态度赢得了大家的谅解。

Jǐnguǎn tā fàn le cuòwù, dàn tā de chéngshí tàidù yíngdé le dàjiā de liàngjiě.

Although he made a mistake, his honest attitude won everyone's forgiveness.

Related Characters

Component: 成

Component: 讠

诚