咀嚼
jǔ jué HSK 6

English Meaning

📚 Example Sentences

他慢慢地咀嚼食物。
Tā mànman de jǔjué shíwù.
He slowly chewed the food.
我们需要仔细咀嚼这个问题。
Wǒmen xūyào zǐxì jǔjué zhège wèntí.
We need to carefully mull over this problem.
她反复咀嚼着那句话的含义。
Tā fǎnfù jǔjué zhe nà jù huà de hányì.
She repeatedly pondered the meaning of that sentence.
他咀嚼口香糖。
Tā jǔjué kǒuxiāngtáng.
He chews gum.
她慢慢咀嚼食物。
Tā mànman jǔjué shíwù.
She chews food slowly.

💡 Memory Tip

Break the word down: 咀 can remind you of a mouth (口 is part of the character), and 嚼 clearly contains the character for tooth (齒 in its traditional form). Think: 'Use your mouth and teeth to 咀嚼 (chew).'

📝 Usage Notes

This word is standard in both written and spoken Chinese, leaning slightly towards formal or descriptive contexts. It is commonly used in medical, health, dietary, and general descriptive settings. It is less casual than the simpler verb 嚼 (jiáo).

📖 Grammar Points

It functions as a transitive verb (e.g., 咀嚼食物). It can be modified by adverbs like 慢慢 (mànmàn) or 仔细 (zǐxì). It is also used in the structure '感到/觉得 + 咀嚼 + 困难' to express difficulty chewing.

🏯 Cultural Notes

In Chinese dietary culture, thorough chewing (细嚼慢咽) is often emphasized as important for digestion and health. The term can also be used metaphorically in literary contexts to mean 'to ponder' or 'to savor' an idea.

🔄 Similar Words

Similar words include 嚼 (jiáo), which is a simpler, more colloquial verb for 'to chew'. 咀嚼 (jǔjué) often implies a more deliberate, thorough, or mindful action and is the standard term in formal or compound contexts.

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