感同身受

gǎntóng-shēnshòu

idiom #17,119

Meanings

1 to feel as if it had happened to oneself; to empathize deeply
2 I take it as a personal favor

Characters

to feel; emotion

to receive; to endure

Literally 'feel the same as if received by one's own body' - to deeply empathize.

Examples

HSK 4

作为一个母亲，她对那位失去孩子的妈妈感同身受。

Zuòwéi yí gè mǔqīn, tā duì nà wèi shīqù háizi de māma gǎntóng-shēnshòu.

As a mother, she deeply empathized with the woman who lost her child.

HSK 6

听到他的遭遇，我感同身受。

Tīngdào tā de zāoyù, wǒ gǎntóng-shēnshòu.

Hearing about his ordeal, I felt as if it had happened to me.

Tips

usage

Originally a polite expression acknowledging a favor given to a friend. In modern usage, it almost exclusively means deep empathy - feeling someone else's pain as your own.

Stroke Order

感 gǎn

同 tóng

身 shēn

受 shòu