尽快
jǐnkuài · HSK 4
as quickly/soon as possible
⏱️ 尽快 = 尽 (exhaust/to the utmost) + 快 (fast) — go as fast as one can
尽 means to use up or push to the limit; 快 means fast. Together: push speed to its limit, i.e. as quickly as possible. Common in requests like 请尽快回复 (please reply ASAP).
尽 — hand 彐 holding brush over fire 灬
Originally depicted a hand holding a brush sweeping out the last embers in a vessel, suggesting 'finishing' or 'using up.' The simplified form 尽 replaces the older 盡, but keeps the core meaning of exhausting or completing something fully.
快 — heart radical 忄 + 夬 (phonetic)
快 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The heart radical 忄 carries the meaning, since the original sense referred to a feeling of pleasure or delight. The right side 夬 supplies the sound. The meaning later extended from 'pleased' to 'quick, fast', the dominant modern sense.