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似曾相识

似曾相識
sìcéngxiāngshí
idiom HSK 7 #13,034

Meanings

  1. 1 déjà vu
  2. 2 seemingly familiar
  3. 3 to seem to have met before

Characters

似
sì
to seem; as if
曾
céng
once; previously
相
xiāng
mutually; each other
识
shí
to know; to recognize
Literally 'seems to have previously known each other' — a feeling of familiarity

Examples

这个地方给我一种似曾相识的感觉。
Zhège dìfang gěi wǒ yī zhǒng sìcéngxiāngshí de gǎnjué.
This place gives me a feeling of déjà vu.
她的笑容让我觉得似曾相识。
Tā de xiàoróng ràng wǒ juéde sìcéngxiāngshí.
Her smile seemed strangely familiar.

Tips

history
This phrase comes from the Song Dynasty poet 晏殊 (Yàn Shū): 无可奈何花落去，似曾相识燕归来 — 'Helplessly, flowers fall; as if familiar, the swallows return.'

Stroke Order

似 sì
曾 céng
相 xiāng
识 shí