Dictionary › 势

势

shì

HSK 5 Character Traditional 勢

What 势 means

1. power
2. influence
3. potential
4. momentum
5. tendency
6. trend
7. situation
8. conditions
9. outward appearance
10. sign
11. gesture
12. male genitals

Example sentences

• 花子虚张声势。
  Huāzi xūzhāngshēngshì.
  Hanako called his bluff.
• 昨晚雨势很大。
  We had a heavy rainfall last night.
• 汤姆有一点势利。
  Tāngmǔ yǒuyīdiǎn shìlì.
  Tom is a bit snobbish.
• 她们用手势沟通。
  They communicate with each other by gesture.
• 汤姆在虚张声势。
  Tom's bluffing.
• 多温柔的手势啊。
  What a tender gesture.

Words starting with 势

• 势力shì lipower; influence; a force (military, political etc)
• 势必shì bìto be bound to; undoubtedly will
• 势头shì tóupower; momentum; tendency
• 势利shì lìsnobbish
• 势在必行shì zài bì xíngcircumstances require action (idiom); absolutely necessary; imperative
• 势子shì zigesture; posture
• 势族shì zúinfluential family; powerful clan
• 势能shì néngpotential energy
• 势要shì yàoinfluential figure; powerful person
• 势不两立shì bù liǎng lìthe two cannot exist together (idiom); irreconcilable differences…
• 势不可当shì bù kě dāngimpossible to resist (idiom); an irresistible force
• 势利小人shì li xiǎo rénsnob
• 势在必得shì zài bì déto be determined to win (idiom)
• 势态shì tàisituation; state
• 势利眼shì li yǎnsnobbish; a snob
• 势降shì jiàngpotential drop (elec.)
• 势均力敌shì jūn lì dí(idiom) evenly matched
• 势单力薄shì dān lì bó(idiom) lacking strength and support
• 势成骑虎shì chéng qí hǔif you ride a tiger, it's hard to get off (idiom); fig. impossible to stop halfway
• 势如破竹shì rú pò zhúlike a hot knife through butter (idiom); with irresistible force
• 势阱shì jǐngpotential well (physics)
• 势不可挡shì bù kě dǎngsee 势不可当

Words containing 势

• 优势yōu shìsuperiority; dominance; advantage
• 形势xíng shìcircumstances; situation; terrain
• 趋势qū shìtrend; tendency
• 姿势zī shìposture; position
• 气势qì shìimposing manner; loftiness; grandeur
• 手势shǒu shìgesture; sign; signal
• 局势jú shìsituation; state (of affairs)
• 地势dì shìterrain; topography relief
• 声势shēng shìfame and power; prestige; influence
• 走势zǒu shìtendency; trend; path
• 弱势ruò shìvulnerable; weak
• 强势qiáng shìstrong; powerful; (linguistics) emphatic
• 攻势gōng shì(military) offensive
• 态势tài shìposture; situation
• 架势jià shiattitude; position (on an issue etc)
• 顺势shùn shìto take advantage; to seize an opportunity; in passing
• 权势quán shìpower; influence
• 伤势shāng shìcondition of an injury
• 情势qíng shìsituation; circumstance
• 劣势liè shìinferior; disadvantaged
• 阵势zhèn shìbattle array; disposition of forces; situation
• 气势汹汹qì shì xiōng xiōngaggressive; truculent; overbearing
• 山势shān shìtopography of a mountain; features of a mountain
• 大势dà shìoverall trend

Characters built on 执

These share the phonetic component 执 (zhí), which is why their readings rhyme. Learning them as a family is far cheaper than learning them one at a time.

• 挚zhìsincere
• 鸷zhìfierce; brutal; bird of prey
• 贽zhìgifts to superiors
• 絷zhíto connect; to tie up

Characters that look like 势

Easy to confuse on sight. Compare them side by side once and the pair stops costing you.

• 努nǔto exert; to strive
• 劳láo(bound form) to toil; labor; (bound form) laborer; (bound form) meritorious deed
• 秀xiù(bound form) refined; elegant; graceful; beautiful; (bound form) superior; excellent…
• 垫diànpad; cushion; mat
• 卦guàdivinatory diagram; one of the eight divinatory trigrams of the Book of Changes 易经…
• 垩èto whitewash; to plaster

Sounds the same

Read shì, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 是to be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true…
• 事matter; thing; item
• 视(literary, or bound form) to look at
• 室room; work unit; grave
• 世life; age; generation
• 市market; city; municipality (administrative unit)
• 试to test; to try; experiment
• 式type; form; pattern
• 示to show; to reveal
• 适to fit; suitable; proper
• 士member of the senior ministerial class (old); scholar (old); bachelor
• 释to explain; to release; Buddha (abbr. for 释迦牟尼