多心

• Pinyin: duō xīn
• Hanzi breakdown: 多 = 夕 (evening) doubled — abundance by repetition; 心 = heart/mind — the organ of thought and feeling

Meaning

Oversensitive; suspicious; touchy. Being overly concerned about others' intentions or actions, often seeing slight where none exists.

多心 describes someone who reads too much into situations, often leading to unnecessary worry or misunderstanding. Common in interpersonal contexts to caution someone against over-interpreting. Often preceded by 你别 (don't) or 她生性 (she is by nature).

Examples

1. 你别多心，他只是随口一说，并没有针对你的意思。 Don’t overthink it—he was just saying it casually and didn’t mean it at you.
2. 她生性多心，同事之间的一句玩笑话都能让她想半天。 She’s naturally oversensitive; even a joke from a coworker can make her dwell on it for a long time.
3. 这件事你真的多心了，他们只是在讨论工作而已，根本没提你的名字。 You’re really reading too much into this—they were just talking about work and didn’t even mention your name.

Usage Guide

Context: interpersonal, psychology, social

Tone: cautionary

Do Say

• 你这次真的多心了，他叫你明天早点来只是为了赶时间，并不是对你有什么意见。(You're really overthinking this time — he asked you to come early tomorrow just to save time, not because he has anything against you.)
• 她总是多心，稍微有人多看她一眼就以为别人在批评自己，这让周围的人很难相处。(She's always oversensitive — if anyone glances at her a moment too long, she assumes they're criticising her, which makes it difficult for those around her.)

Don't Say

• 他多心地完成了任务 — 多心 describes a mental tendency or perception, not a manner of completing a task; it only applies to interpersonal or emotional contexts

Origin & History

多 (excessive) + 心 (mind/heart) — having too many thoughts or suspicions

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal