Chinese word

死心

Pronunciation

Pinyinsǐ xīn

Meaning

  • verbgive up on

Example

我对这件事已经死心了。wǒ duì zhè jiàn shì yǐ jīng sǐ xīn le

I've already given up on this matter.

Illustration for 死心 (give up on)

More examples

他早就对这份工作死心，最近才开始找别的机会。tā zǎo jiù duì zhè fèn gōng zuò sǐ xīn zuì jìn cái kāi shǐ zhǎo bié de jī huì

He had long given up on this job and only recently started looking for other opportunities.

Core concept

The inner hope attached to something dies, and attention and effort turn away from it.

Common phrases

  • 早就死心zǎo jiù sǐ xīn

    have long given up

  • 对这段感情死心duì zhè duàn gǎn qíng sǐ xīn

    give up on this relationship

Similar words

放弃fàng qì: To give up a plan or activity and no longer continue with it.
绝望jué wàng: To have no hope left and believe that a desired result is impossible.
灰心huī xīn: To lose heart because continued effort seems unable to produce success.
认输rèn shū: To accept a loss in a struggle and stop trying to win.

Definition in Chinese

对某事物彻底失望，不再抱任何期待，停止为之投入情感或精力。duì mǒu shì wù chè dǐ shī wàng bú zài bào rèn hé qī dài tíng zhǐ wèi zhī tóu rù qíng gǎn huò jīng lì

Word origin

死 (sǐ, "die") + 心 (xīn, "heart") presents hope as the heart's living force, so a dead heart naturally came to mean no longer expecting a desired result.

Usage tips

  • The verb can describe giving up on a person or situation as well as on a plan, so its object is broader than many English learners first expect.

Other meanings

  • lose hopeverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word