Chinese word

敏感

Pronunciation

Pinyinmǐn gǎn

Meaning

  • adjectivesensitive

Example

她对批评很敏感。tā duì pī píng hěn mín gǎn

She is very sensitive to criticism.

Illustration for 敏感 (sensitive)

More examples

他对气味很敏感，闻到浓烈的味道会不舒服。tā duì qì wèi hěn mín gǎn wén dào nóng liè de wèi dào huì bù shū fú

He is very sensitive to odors, and strong smells make him uncomfortable.

Core concept

An open channel from the outside world to the mind or body, so signals register quickly and strongly.

Common phrases

  • 对批评敏感duì pī píng mín gǎn

    sensitive to criticism

  • 对气味敏感duì qì wèi mín gǎn

    sensitive to odors

  • 对温度敏感duì wēn dù mín gǎn

    sensitive to temperature

Similar words

敏锐mǐn ruì: Sharp at noticing small changes in people, expressions, or intentions.
灵敏líng mǐn: Responsive to slight changes, especially in the senses, body organs, or machines.
细腻xì nì: Aware of fine emotional details and subtle differences in expression.

Definition in Chinese

对外界刺激有较强的感受力，容易产生情绪或生理反应的状态。duì wài jiè cì jī yǒu jiào qiáng de gǎn shòu lì róng yì chǎn shēng qíng xù huò shēng lí fǎn yìng de zhuàng tài

Word origin

敏 (mǐn, "quick and alert") + 感 (gǎn, "feel") forms a compound for a mind or body that takes in outside signals readily and strongly.

Usage tips

  • When 敏感 (mǐngǎn, "sensitive") modifies a topic or question, it signals that the wording may cause a strong reaction, not that the topic detects anything.

Other meanings

  • hypersensitiveadjective
  • perceptiveadjective

Opposites

Related words

  • 敏感性mín gǎn xìngsensitivitynoun

Word lists with this word