心思

• Pinyin: xīn si
• Hanzi breakdown: 心 = heart (pictograph); 思 = 田 + 心 (the mind working like a field)

Meaning

Thoughts; mind; attention; intention. What occupies one's mind or the energy one devotes to thinking.

Can describe both one's train of thought and one's willingness to focus. Often used with negation (没心思) to indicate lack of desire or concentration.

Examples

1. 他一门心思扑在科研上，对其他事情毫不在意。 He has thrown himself into scientific research with single-minded focus and doesn’t care about anything else.
2. 连续熬夜之后，她根本没心思处理日常事务。 After staying up night after night, she had no mental energy left to deal with everyday tasks.
3. 这个孩子心思细腻，总能体察到别人的情绪变化。 This child is thoughtful and sensitive, always able to pick up on other people’s emotional changes.

Usage Guide

Context: daily life, psychology, literature

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 经历了这一系列挫折之后，她暂时没有心思去考虑职业规划的问题。(After this series of setbacks, she was temporarily in no mood to consider questions of career planning.)
• 他把全部心思都放在了提升团队效率上，几乎忽略了自身的休息需求。(He devoted all his mental energy to improving team efficiency, almost entirely neglecting his own need for rest.)

Don't Say

• 他的心思很好 — 心思 means thoughts/mind, not mood; say 心情很好 for 'in a good mood'

Origin & History

心 (heart/mind) + 思 (think/thought)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal