总 zǒng always
always; overall
How to remember 总: 丷 horns + 口 mouth + 心 heart = always. The football fan in plastic horns opens his mouth wide and sings from the heart for the team he has always loved.
Component breakdown
总 = 𠮦 + 心 heart
- 𠮦
- 丷 horns
- 口 mouth
- 心 heart
The football fan in plastic horns opens his mouth wide and sings from the heart for the team he has always loved.
How it came to be
The full form is silk with loose threads being gathered into one bunch beside it. Pulling everything together is the sense: altogether, in every case, and so always.
How it is used
- Bound morpheme meaning "always / all the time" as an adverb - 他总是迟到 (tā zǒngshì chídào) he's always late; the fuller form 总是 is more common than bare 总.
- Also "overall / total" in nouns of scope - 总数 (zǒngshù) the total, 总部 (zǒngbù) head office, 总统 (zǒngtǒng) president.
- 总共 (zǒnggòng) = in all, all told: 总共十个人 (zǒnggòng shí ge rén) ten people in all - sums up a count.
- 总结 (zǒngjié) means to sum up / wrap up (a report, a year), narrower than English 'summarize'; for boiling down someone else's text use 概括 (gàikuò) instead.
Characters built with 总
Words with 总
- 总是zǒngshìalwaysHSK 3
- 总结zǒngjiésummarizeHSK 4
- 总之zǒngzhīin a wordHSK 5
- 总体zǒngtǐcompletelyHSK 5
- 总共zǒnggòngaltogetherHSK 5
- 总数zǒngshùtotalHSK 5
- 总统zǒngtǒngpresident (of a country)HSK 5
- 总部zǒngbùgeneral headquartersHSK 5
- 总理zǒnglǐpremierHSK 6
- 总算zǒngsuànat long lastHSK 6
- 总裁zǒngcáichairmanHSK 6
- 总计zǒngjìtotalHSK 6
- 总和zǒnghésumHSK 7
- 总而言之zǒng’éryánzhīin shortHSK 7
- 总额zǒng’étotal (amount or value)HSK 8
Example sentences
- 他是公司的总经理。 Tā shì gōngsī de zǒngjīnglǐ.He is the general manager at the company.
- 老人人口占总人口的百分之三十。 Lǎorén rénkǒu zhàn zǒng rénkǒu de bǎifēnzhī sān shí.Elderly people account for 30% of the total population.
- 他总是先想别人，其次才想到自己。 Tā zǒng shì xiān xiǎng biéren, qícì cái xiǎng dào zìjǐ.He always thinks of others first, then himself.
- 主任总结了发言。 Zhǔrèn zǒngjiéle fāyán.The director summarized the presentations.