Chinese word

想起

Pronunciation

Pinyinxiǎng qǐ

Meaning

  • verbremember

Example

我突然想起了他的名字。wǒ tū rán xiáng qǐ le tā de míng zì

I suddenly remembered his name.

Illustration for 想起 (remember)

More examples

看到老照片，我想起了很多过去的事。kàn dào lǎo zhào piān wǒ xiáng qǐ le hěn duō guò qù de shì

When I saw old photos, I remembered many things from the past.

Core concept

A past detail rises back into the mind, whether it appears on its own or after a search through memory.

Common phrases

  • 想起他的名字xiáng qǐ tā de míng zì

    remember his name

  • 想起小时候的事xiáng qǐ xiǎo shí hòu de shì

    remember things from childhood

  • 想起来xiǎng qǐ lái

    remember

Similar words

记得jì de: Remember information or an event and retain it for later recall.
想到xiǎng dào: Think of an idea, person, or thing when something prompts the thought.

Definition in Chinese

在头脑中检索并使过去的记忆浮现出来，可以是自发出现也可以是有意回想。zài tóu nǎo zhōng jián suǒ bìng shǐ guò qù de jì yì fú xiàn chū lái ké yǐ shì zì fā chū xiàn yě ké yǐ shì yǒu yì huí xiǎng

Word origin

想起 (xiǎngqǐ, "remember") combines 想 (xiǎng, "think") with 起 (qǐ, "rise"), presenting a remembered thought as one that rises into the mind.

Usage tips

  • In English, "remember to do" means not forgetting a future action, while this word concerns a memory that comes back.

Other meanings

  • think ofverb
  • recallverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 想起来xiǎng qǐ láirememberverb
  • 想不起xiǎng bù qǐcannot rememberverb

Word lists with this word