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忠

zhōng
adjective #5,732

Meanings

  1. 1 loyal
  2. 2 devoted
  3. 3 faithful

Examples

HSK 7-9
他对朋友很忠诚。
Tā duì péngyou hěn zhōngchéng.
He is very loyal to his friends.
HSK 7-9
忠言逆耳。
Zhōngyán nì'ěr.
Honest advice is hard to hear.

Tips

memory
心 (heart) in the middle - loyalty comes from the heart.
usage
Common in 忠诚 (loyal) and 忠实 (faithful).

Components

radical
心 xīn
heart; mind
Heart radical at the bottom - the indexing radical. Anchors 忠 in the family of moral and emotional virtues alongside 忍 (endure), 怒 (anger), 恕 (forgive). Compound logic: centred (中) + heart (心) = a heart held in the centre, undivided in its devotion = loyalty.
phonetic
中 zhōng
middle; centre
Top component supplies the sound exactly: zhōng. Reinforced semantically - 中 means centred, balanced, true, which echoes the moral sense of loyalty (a centred heart, not swayed). Phonetic plus deep semantic alignment. Same phonetic in 钟 (clock/bell), 衷 (innermost feelings) - a tight zhong family.

Stroke Order

忠 zhōng