Meaning of 中心
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- center; heart; core
How to use 中心
中心 is used for the physical center of a place and also for places named as centers, like shopping or service centers. It can also mean the core idea of something. Example: 我住在城市中心。(Wǒ zhù zài chéngshì zhōngxīn.) I live in the city center.
中 (zhōng) looks like a line going straight through the middle of a box, and 心 (xīn) is the heart. The middle and the heart of something together give you its center or core.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 中心 (zhōngxīn) and 中间 (zhōngjiān). 中间 means the middle or between two things, while 中心 means the central point or a hub. So say 坐在我们中间 (sit between us), not 坐在我们中心.
中心 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
中 zhōng · within · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
心 xīn · heart · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Related words
Words that share a character with 中心.
| 中国 | Zhōngguó | China |
| 中间 | zhōngjiān | the middle; the inside; in the middle; within; between; among |
| 中午 | zhōngwǔ | noon; midday |
| 中学 | zhōngxué | middle school |
| 中文 | Zhōngwén | Chinese language |
| 中学生 | zhōngxuéshēng | middle-school student; high school student |
| 小心 | xiǎoxīn | to be careful; to take care |
| 开心 | kāixīn | to feel happy; to rejoice |
| 其中 | qízhōng | among; in |
| 关心 | guānxīn | to be concerned about; to care about |
| 放心 | fàngxīn | to feel relieved; to feel reassured |
| 心情 | xīnqíng | mood; frame of mind |
Questions about 中心
What does 中心 mean?
中心 (zhōngxīn) means "center; heart; core" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 中心?
中心 is made of 2 characters: 中 (4 strokes), 心 (4 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.
Is 中心 an HSK word?
Yes. 中心 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
Is 中心 used in the names of places and organizations?
Yes, very often. You will see names like 购物中心 (gòuwù zhōngxīn) shopping center and 医疗中心 (yīliáo zhōngxīn) medical center. In these names it works like the English word center.
What does 以…为中心 mean?
The pattern 以…为中心 (yǐ… wéi zhōngxīn) means to take something as the center or focus. For example, 以学生为中心 (yǐ xuéshēng wéi zhōngxīn) means student-centered.