Meaning of 自身
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- itself
- oneself
- one's own
How to use 自身
自身 is more formal than 自己 (zìjǐ) and often appears in writing, news, and discussions about problems, abilities, or interests. It can refer to people, organizations, or things. Example: 他要先解决自身的问题。(Tā yào xiān jiějué zìshēn de wèntí.) He needs to solve his own problems first.
自 (zì) means self and 身 (shēn) means body. Put them together and you get your own body, your own self: 自身 means oneself or itself.
Common mistake: Learners often use 自身 where 自己 sounds more natural in everyday speech, as in saying 我自身去 for "I'll go myself." Use 我自己去 (wǒ zìjǐ qù) for doing something by yourself. 自身 is mostly used as a noun or modifier, like 自身的 or 自身利益.
自身 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.
自 zì · self · 6 strokes
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身 shēn · body · 7 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 自身.
| 身上 | shēnshang | on the body; at hand |
| 身体 | shēntǐ | the body; one's health |
| 自己 | zìjǐ | oneself; (attributive) one's own |
| 自由 | zìyóu | freedom; liberty; free; unrestricted |
| 来自 | láizì | to come from (a place); From: (in email header) |
| 身边 | shēnbiān | at one's side; on hand |
| 全身 | quánshēn | the whole body; (typography) em |
| 自行车 | zìxíngchē | bicycle; bike |
| 大自然 | dàzìrán | nature (the natural world) |
| 自然 | zìrán | nature; natural |
| 自从 | zìcóng | since (a time); ever since |
| 亲自 | qīnzì | personally; in person |
Questions about 自身
What does 自身 mean?
自身 (zìshēn) means "itself; oneself" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 自身?
自身 is made of 2 characters: 自 (6 strokes), 身 (7 strokes). That is 13 strokes in total.
Is 自身 an HSK word?
Yes. 自身 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 自身 and 自己?
自己 (zìjǐ) is the everyday word for oneself and works as a pronoun, as in 我自己做 (I do it myself). 自身 is more formal and is usually used as a noun or modifier, especially in phrases like 自身原因 (one's own reasons) or 自身价值 (one's own value).
Can 自身 be used for things, not just people?
Yes. 自身 can refer to companies, systems, or objects, meaning itself. For example, 这个系统自身有问题 (zhège xìtǒng zìshēn yǒu wèntí) means the system itself has problems.