衷肠

衷腸
zhōngcháng
noun #33,092

Meanings

  1. 1 heartfelt feelings; innermost thoughts; what's in one's heart

Examples

HSK 7-9
Tāmen liǎ gòng xù zhōngcháng, tán le yī zhěngyè.
The two of them poured out their hearts to each other and talked all night.
HSK 7-9
Tā zhōngyú xiàng mǔqīn qīngsù zhōngcháng.
She finally poured out her innermost feelings to her mother.

Tips

usage
('inner; from the heart') + ('intestines'). Chinese pictures deep emotion as residing in the gut, not just the heart - hence the literal 'inner-intestines' for 'heartfelt feelings'. Lives almost exclusively in fixed phrases: 倾诉衷肠 ('pour out one's heart'), 共叙衷肠 ('share innermost feelings together'), 互诉衷肠 ('mutually confide').
register
Literary/formal - appears in novels and lyrics, rare in everyday speech.

Stroke Order

zhōng
cháng