心急如焚
xīnjírúfén · HSK 7
Anxious
🔥 心(heart)+急(urgent)+如(as if)+焚(burning) = so anxious the heart feels on fire
A four-character idiom built from 心 heart, 急 urgent, 如 as-if, and 焚 to burn. The literal sum 'heart urgent as if burning' is the meaning: gnawing, restless anxiety. 焚 stacks 木 (wood) over 火 (fire) — wood feeding flames.
心 — pictograph of a heart with chambers and aorta
心 is a pictograph showing a stylized heart, with strokes representing the organ's chambers and the aorta at the top. Originally meaning the physical heart, it broadened to cover mind, feelings, and intentions, since ancient Chinese thought located thinking and emotion in the heart.
急 — heart radical 心 + 及 (reach)
A semantic-phonetic compound: the heart radical 心 supplies the meaning (an emotional state) while 及 ('to reach, catch up') gives the sound. Originally it depicted a racing, anxious heart — hence the modern senses 'urgent,' 'hurried,' and 'impatient.'
如 — woman radical 女 + mouth 口
Originally a phono-semantic compound where 女 (woman) suggested compliance and 口 (mouth) indicated speaking or following orders. The early sense was 'to follow' or 'to comply with what is said,' which extended to 'to be like' or 'as if.' Modern uses like 'if' and 'such as' grew from this comparative meaning.