生命

นิรุกติศาสตร์และส่วนประกอบ

The Chinese word 生命 (shēngmìng) for "life" is composed of two characters: 生 (shēng) and 命 (mìng). The character 生 originally meant "to give birth" or "to grow", and it is often used in words related to life, such as 生活 (shēnghuó) "life" and 生存 (shēngcún) "survival". The character 命 originally meant "a command" or "an order", and it is often used in words related to fate or destiny, such as 命运 (mìngyùn) "fate" and 使命 (shǐmìng) "mission". When combined, the two characters 生 and 命 form the word 生命, which refers to the state of being alive or the duration of life.