感同身受
gǎntóngshēnshòu
The English word 'relatable' can be expressed in Chinese as 感同身受 (gǎntóngshēnshòu).
While 'relatable' in English can describe a person or a character, 感同身受 is typically used as a verb or a descriptive state to express that one deeply empathizes with another's feelings or experiences.
Meaning: possible to relate (adj)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 感 (feel), 同 (the same), 身 (body/self) and 受 (experience/receive), meaning to feel the same as one experiences personally.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Taiwanese Mandarin, people often use the phrase 有共鳴.
How do you pronounce it?
gǎntóngshēnshòu
Did you know?
- If you want to say a movie is 'relatable' in a modern, social media sense, you might use the slang term 扎心了, which literally means 'it pierced my heart'.
- While we use it to mean 'I can relate', the original historical usage of 感同身受 was to express feeling someone else's gratitude as if it were your own.
- The phrase 有共鳴 (yǒu gòngmíng), often used in Taiwan for 'relatable', literally translates to 'having resonance', as if two objects are vibrating at the same frequency.
Examples in context
- 听到他的经历，我感同身受。Tīng dào tā de jīnglì, wǒ gǎntóngshēnshòu.Hearing about his experience, I can truly relate.
- 虽然没去过，但我感同身受。Suīrán méi qù guò, dàn wǒ gǎntóngshēnshòu.Even though I haven't been there, I can relate to the feeling.
Example conversation
Two friends talking about their difficult first day at a new job.
- 浩然 Haoran我第一天上班紧张得不行。Wǒ dì yī tiān shàngbān jǐnzhāng de bùxíng.I was incredibly nervous on my first day of work.
- 梓涵 Zihan对此我感同身受，我也一样。Duì cǐ wǒ gǎntóngshēnshòu, wǒ yě yīyàng.I can relate to that, I was the same way.
- 浩然 Haoran后来慢慢就适应了。Hòulái mànman jiù shìyìng le.I slowly got used to it later on.
- 梓涵 Zihan是的，时间会解决一切。Shì de, shíjiān huì jiějué yīqiè.Yes, time solves everything.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 感同身受, CC BY-SA 4.0.
