嘘

噓

xū

口 + 虚

Definitions

xū (interjection) hush!; shh!

xū (verb) to exhale slowly; to hiss

Etymology phono-semantic

mouth

Semantic: 口 Phonetic: 虚

About

嘘 (xū) is a phono-semantic compound: the semantic component 口 (mouth) indicates an action involving the mouth, and the phonetic component 虚 (xū) , the simplified form of 虛 in traditional 噓 , provides the pronunciation. The character originally meant to exhale slowly, then came to refer to the hissing or hushing sound made to demand silence or express disapproval. Today it is used as an interjection to shush someone, or as a verb meaning to boo or hiss in strong dissatisfaction.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

嘘，请安静一点。

Xū, qǐng ānjìng yīdiǎn.

Shush, please be a little quieter.

他嘘了一声，让大家安静。

Tā xūle yī shēng, ràng dàjiā ānjìng.

He made a shushing sound to ask everyone to be quiet.

图书馆里需要保持嘘声。

Túshūguǎn lǐ xūyào bǎochí xūshēng.

The library needs to maintain a quiet atmosphere.

别吹嘘你的成绩了。

Bié chuīxū nǐ de chéngjì le.

Don't boast about your grades.

观众对糟糕的表演发出嘘声。

Guānzhòng duì zāogāo de biǎoyǎn fāchū xūshēng.

The audience booed at the terrible performance.

他总是喜欢吹嘘自己的经历。

Tā zǒngshì xǐhuān chuīxū zìjǐ de jīnglì.

He always likes to boast about his experiences.

他的吹嘘让人感到不耐烦。

Tā de chuīxū ràng rén gǎndào bù nàifán.

His boasting makes people feel impatient.

在会议上，他因吹嘘过度而受到批评。

Zài huìyì shàng, tā yīn chuīxū guòdù ér shòudào pīpíng.

At the meeting, he was criticized for boasting excessively.

Related Characters

Component: 口

Component: 虚

嘘