呼应

• Pinyin: hū yìng
• Hanzi breakdown: 呼 = 口 (mouth) + 乎 (phonetic) — to call out; 应 = 广 (shelter) + 隹 (bird) + 心 (heart) — to respond; correspond

Meaning

To echo; to respond in coordination; to correspond with. The mutual reinforcement or coordination between two elements — people, events, texts, or actions.

Used to describe coordination between parties in action or communication, and in literary analysis to describe structural correspondences within a text (首尾呼应 — echo between the opening and closing of a piece). Also used for echoing themes or motifs.

Examples

1. 文章的结尾与开头巧妙呼应，形成了完整而严密的论证结构。 The essay’s ending cleverly echoes its opening, creating a complete and tightly reasoned argument.
2. 两支部队分别从东西两翼发动攻势，彼此形成战略呼应，有效分散了对方的防御力量。 The two units launched offensives from the eastern and western flanks, strategically supporting each other and effectively dispersing the enemy’s defensive forces.
3. 这项倡议得到了多个城市的积极响应，各地纷纷出台配套措施与之呼应。 The initiative received an enthusiastic response from multiple cities, and local governments introduced supporting measures to match it.

Usage Guide

Context: literature, military, politics, coordination, writing

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 这篇散文的叙事结构十分严谨，开篇提出的核心意象在结尾处得到了精妙的呼应，令整篇作品浑然一体，意蕴深远。(The narrative structure of this essay is very rigorous; the central image introduced at the opening is echoed with great skill at the close, making the entire piece cohere as a unified whole with rich resonance.)
• 中央政策颁布之后，各省市迅速出台配套实施细则，与顶层设计形成有效呼应，确保政策精神在基层得到切实贯彻。(After the central policy was promulgated, provinces and cities swiftly issued supporting implementation rules, effectively echoing the top-level design and ensuring that the spirit of the policy was genuinely implemented at the grassroots level.)

Don't Say

• 呼应 as a synonym for 回应 in all contexts — 回应 simply means to respond to something, while 呼应 emphasises mutual coordination, structural correspondence, or symmetrical reinforcement between two elements

Origin & History

呼 (call out) + 应 (respond; echo) — to call out and receive a response; mutual echoing

Cultural Context

Era: Traditional to Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Educated