Meaning of 消极
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- negative
- passive
- inactive
How to use 消极
消极 describes attitudes, moods, or behavior that lack drive or look on the dark side. It often appears in phrases like 消极态度 (xiāojí tàidu, negative attitude) and 消极影响 (xiāojí yǐngxiǎng, negative influence). Example: 他最近很消极。(Tā zuìjìn hěn xiāojí.) He has been very negative lately.
消 (xiāo) means to fade away, as in 消失 (xiāoshī), and 极 (jí) means an extreme or pole. Picture your energy fading to the lowest pole, and you get 消极, negative or passive.
Common mistake: Learners often use 消极 for negative numbers or a negative test result, but those use 负 (fù) and 阴性 (yīnxìng). Also do not confuse 极 (jí) with its opposite partner 积 (jī) in 积极 (jījí). They sound similar but differ in tone and meaning.
消极 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.
消 xiāo · to diminish · 10 strokes
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极 jí · extremely · 7 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 消极.
| 消息 | xiāoxi | (piece of) news; information; message |
| 消失 | xiāoshī | to disappear; to fade away |
| 取消 | qǔxiāo | to cancel; to call off; to revoke; to rescind |
| 极了 | jí le | extremely; exceedingly |
| 积极 | jījí | active; energetic |
| 消费 | xiāofèi | to consume (goods and services, resources etc) |
| 积极性 | jījíxìng | zeal; initiative |
| 极其 | jíqí | extremely |
| 消化 | xiāohuà | to digest (food); (fig.) to absorb (information etc); to assimilate; to process |
| 消除 | xiāochú | to eliminate; to remove |
| 北极 | běijí | the North Pole; the north magnetic pole |
| 消防 | xiāofáng | firefighting; fire control |
Questions about 消极
What does 消极 mean?
消极 (xiāojí) means "negative; passive" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 消极?
消极 is made of 2 characters: 消 (10 strokes), 极 (7 strokes). That is 17 strokes in total.
Is 消极 an HSK word?
Yes. 消极 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 消极 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 消极 is written 消極.
What is the opposite of 消极?
The opposite is 积极 (jījí), meaning active, positive, or energetic. The two are often contrasted, as in 积极的态度 versus 消极的态度.
Can 消极 describe a person directly?
Yes. You can say 他很消极 (tā hěn xiāojí) to mean he is pessimistic or unmotivated. It can also describe actions, like 消极怠工 (xiāojí dàigōng), to slack off at work on purpose.