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伺

sì / cì
verb #38,196

Meanings

  1. 1 to watch; to observe
  2. 2 to spy on
  3. 3 to lie in wait for

Examples

HSK 2
他在伺机行动。
Tā zài sìjī xíngdòng.
He was watching for an opportunity to act.
HSK 7-9
猫蹲在那里窥伺小鸟。
Māo dūn zài nàlǐ kuīsì xiǎoniǎo.
The cat crouched, spying on the bird.

Tips

mistakes
Two readings. As 伺 (sì) it means to watch or spy, as in 伺机 (watch for a chance) and 窥伺 (spy on). But in the everyday word 伺候 (to wait on, serve) it is read cì.

Components

radical
亻 dānrénpáng
person
The side-person radical 亻 (a compressed 人, person) signals a human action here: watching, spying, or attending on someone.
phonetic
司 sī
to manage; take charge
司 (sī, to manage) supplies the sound, lightly shifted to sì. It also adds a faint flavor of overseeing or keeping watch, which matches the meaning.

Stroke Order

伺 sì