ENESFRDE中文

Characters, words, pinyin or English

势 shì power

power; force; tendency

How to remember 势: 执 hold on to + 力 power = power. The little boy tries to hold on to the leash, but the big dog uses all its power and drags him across the park by sheer power.

  • HSK 5
  • 8 strokes
  • Radical 力

Component breakdown

形声 · Meaning + sound

originally 埶 + 力

One part gives the meaning, the other gives the sound.

势 = 执 hold on to + 力 power

  • 执 hold on to shape only
  • 力 power meaning
The Gushi story

The little boy tries to hold on to the leash, but the big dog uses all its power and drags him across the park by sheer power.

How it came to be

Power gives the meaning; in the full form, the top part gave the sound.

How it is used

  • Bound root for "force, tendency, condition": builds abstract nouns like 形势 xíngshì "the situation/circumstances" and 趋势 qūshì "trend", both common in news and analysis.
  • 优势 yōushì "advantage" and 劣势 lièshì "disadvantage" are the standard pair for comparing strengths and weaknesses.
  • 姿势 zīshì "posture, pose" and 手势 shǒushì "hand gesture" are the concrete, everyday members of this family: physical rather than abstract.

Words with 势