Chinese word

似曾相识

Pronunciation

Pinyinsì céng xiāng shí

Meaning

  • idiomseem familiar

Example

看到这幅画我突然觉得似曾相识。kàn dào zhè fú huà wǒ tū rán jué de sì céng xiāng shí

Seeing this painting, I suddenly feel like I've seen it before.

Illustration for 似曾相识 (seem familiar)

More examples

走进旧城区，一处熟悉的拐角让我感到似曾相识。zǒu jìn jiù chéng qū yí chù shú xī de guái jiǎo ràng wǒ gǎn dào sì céng xiāng shí

Walking into the old city, a familiar corner made me feel like I had seen it before.

Core concept

An old trace of memory seems to overlay a person, scene, or thing in the present.

Common phrases

  • 给人似曾相识的感觉gěi rén sì céng xiāng shí de gǎn jué

    give someone a sense of familiarity

  • 让人产生似曾相识的错觉ràng rén chǎn shēng sì céng xiāng shí de cuò jué

    make someone feel a false sense of familiarity

Similar words

似曾谋面sì céng móu miàn: A feeling that a person seems familiar, as if met face to face before.

Definition in Chinese

感觉眼前的人或事好像以前见过或经历过。gǎn jué yǎn qián de rén huò shì hǎo xiàng yǐ qián jiàn guò huò jīng lì guò

Word origin

似 (sì, "seem like") + 曾 (céng, "once") + 相 (xiāng, "each other") + 识 (shí, "know") expresses a present impression of knowing a person or recognizing a scene from an earlier time.

Usage tips

  • In everyday conversation, 有点儿 (yǒudiǎnr, "a little") often softens this expression, while the idiom itself can sound more literary than plain spoken wording.

Other meanings

  • deja vuidiom

Opposites

Word lists with this word