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心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉
心不在焉

心不在焉 — “To be absent-minded”

心不在焉 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be absent-minded”. To have one's mind elsewhere; not paying attention. Literally, “mind not present”.

Frequency

心不在焉 Pronunciation and Pinyin

  • 心xīn
  • 不bù
  • 在zài
  • 焉yān

心不在焉 Character Breakdown

CharacterPinyinStrokesMeaning
心
xīn4heart, mind, core
不
bù4not
在
zài6to be at or in
焉
yān11how can one

Example Sentence with 心不在焉

上课时他总是心不在焉,老师提出的问题他一个也答不上来。
During class, he was always absent-minded, and he couldn't answer any of the questions the teacher asked.

Idioms Related to 心不在焉

Synonyms of 心不在焉

  • xīn心yuán猿yì意mǎ马restless and distracted
  • màn漫bù不jīng经xīn心to be careless or inattentive
  • hún魂bù不shǒu守shè舍absent-minded and distracted

Antonyms of 心不在焉

  • zhuān专xīn心zhì致zhì志concentrate one's attention wholeheartedly
  • quán全shén神guàn贯zhù注fully absorbed in something

More idioms starting with 心

  • xīn心shàng上xīn心xià下feeling uneasy and agitated
  • xīn心bù不liǎng两yòng用Cannot focus on two things at once
  • xīn心bù不yīng应kǒu口to say one thing but mean another
  • xīn心bù不yóu由zhǔ主lose self-control due to strong emotions
  • xīn心bù不yóu由jǐ己against one's will
  • xīn心bù不yóu由yì意act against one's true intention
  • xīn心bù不fù负rén人,,miàn面wú无cán惭sè色clear conscience, unashamed look
  • xīn心zhōng中wú无shù数to be uncertain
  • xīn心zhōng中yǒu有shù数know what's what
  • xīn心zhōng中méi没dǐ底feel uncertain or lack confidence
  • xīn心wèi为xíng形yì役Mind enslaved by worldly concerns
  • xīn心zhī之guān官zé则sī思The mind's function is to think

Questions about 心不在焉

What does 心不在焉 mean?
心不在焉 (xīn bù zài yān) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be absent-minded”.
How do you pronounce 心不在焉?
心不在焉 is pronounced xīn bù zài yān in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 心不在焉 literally mean?
Literally, 心不在焉 means “mind not present”. It is used to mean “to be absent-minded”.
What is the Chinese definition of 心不在焉?
心思不在这里。指思想不集中。
Copy the pinyin for 心不在焉 →Choose tone marks or tone numbers and copy the complete four-character reading.Read Chinese vocabulary and idiom guides →Continue with words, phrases, and idioms explained through natural examples.

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