HSK 6 · Emotions

思念 sīniàn “to miss” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 思念 means

  1. to miss
  2. to long for
  3. to think of

How to say 思念

  • Pitch chart of the first tone: stays high and level, 5 to 5 on the five-level scale思sī1st tone, high and level
  • Pitch chart of the fourth tone: falls from high to low, 5 to 1 on the five-level scale念niàn4th tone, falling

思念 in a sentence

  1. 我很思念过去的日子。

    Wǒ hěn sīniàn guòqù de rìzi.

    I really miss the old days.

    Sentence #3065695 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  2. 所有的思念与祝福都包进了那薄薄的饺子皮里。

    Suǒyǒu de sīniàn yǔ zhùfú dōu bāo jìn le nà báobáo de jiǎozi pí lǐ.

    All the longing and good wishes are wrapped up in those thin dumpling skins.

    Sentence #757023 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  3. 文学作品中常用夜来香来象征思念与柔情。

    Wénxué zuòpǐn zhōng chángyòng yèláixiāng lái xiàngzhēng sīniàn yǔ róuqíng.

    In literature, night-blooming jasmine is often used to symbolise longing and tenderness.

    Sentence #13533995 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

How 思念 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 思 (sī) with each of its parts in a different colour
思sīto think
  • 田field · tián
  • 心heart · xīn

Memory aidA head 田 (once a drawing of the skull) above the heart 心: to think.

The character 念 (niàn) with each of its parts in a different colour
念niànto read
  • 今modern · jīn
  • 心heart · xīn

How to write 思念

思 9 strokes · 念 8 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

思念 (sīniàn) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 思念 (sīniàn). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 思念

Words with 思

意思yìsi · meaning没意思méiyìsi · boring有意思yǒuyìsi · interesting不好意思bùhǎoyìsi · to feel embarrassed思考sīkǎo · to reflect on思想sīxiǎng · thought沉思chénsī · to ponder反思fǎnsī · to reflect on构思gòusī · to conceive (an idea or plot)思索sīsuǒ · to ponder

Words with 念

念niàn · to read aloud观念guānniàn · notion纪念jìniàn · to commemorate想念xiǎngniàn · to miss怀念huáiniàn · to cherish the memory of概念gàiniàn · concept留念liúniàn · to keep as a memento悬念xuánniàn · suspense信念xìnniàn · belief

More words: Emotions & Attitudes

深情厚谊shēnqínghòuyì · deep friendship受罪shòuzuì · to suffer舒畅shūchàng · happy疏远shūyuǎn · to drift apart叹气tànqì · to sigh陶醉táozuì · to be intoxicated (by)体谅tǐliàng · to be understanding唾弃tuòqì · to spurn

FAQs

思念 (sīniàn) means “to miss” or “to long for”. It is an HSK 6 word.
Say it sīniàn: sī with a 1st tone, then niàn with a 4th tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 思念 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type sinian with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 思念 from the suggestions. Typing sinian into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
思念 is an HSK 6 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

Turn words into conversations

A dictionary gives you the words. A native teacher shows you how to use them. Start with a free 30-minute intro call.

Book a free intro call

Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.