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HSK 3

关心

to care about; to be concerned about

verbneutral
关
guān1st tone
心
xīn1st tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
guānxīn
Part of speech
verb
Level
HSK 3
Strokes
10
Register
neutral

Stroke order for 关心

关心 is written with 10 strokes (关: 6, 心: 4). The animation replays automatically.

What does 关心 mean?

关心 (guānxīn) is a verb meaning 'to care about' or 'to be concerned about' someone or something — to actively pay attention to their wellbeing or to a situation.

Use it for people you genuinely care for (父母关心孩子 — parents care about their children), for social issues (关心环境 — care about the environment), and for politely thanking someone (谢谢你的关心 — thanks for your concern). Two notes for English speakers: first, 关心 implies REAL concern and warmth — it's stronger than the throwaway English 'I don't really care'; for that, use 在乎 (zàihu) or 在意 (zàiyì).

Second, you don't use 关心 for liking something trivial (don't say 我关心咖啡 — I 'care about' coffee); use 喜欢 (xǐhuan) instead. 关心 is reserved for sincere, often nurturing, attention.

Note: Warmer and more sincere than English 'care about.' Used to express genuine concern for family, friends, students, or social issues — not for trivial preferences.

Character by character

关guānto be involved with; concern (also: to close)
+
心xīnheart; mind
=
关心

Memory hook: 关 'involve' + 心 'heart' — to involve your heart in someone or something: to care.

Example sentences

谢谢你的关心。

Xièxie nǐ de guānxīn.

Thank you for your concern.

polite

妈妈很关心我。

Māma hěn guānxīn wǒ.

Mom cares about me a lot.

spoken

我们应该关心别人。

Wǒmen yīnggāi guānxīn biérén.

We should care about others.

neutral

老师很关心学生的学习。

Lǎoshī hěn guānxīn xuésheng de xuéxí.

The teacher really cares about the students' studies.

neutral

Common phrases with 关心

关心你guānxīn nǐto care about you
关心孩子guānxīn háizito care for children
谢谢关心xièxie guānxīnthanks for your concern
关心别人guānxīn biérénto care about others
关心健康guānxīn jiànkāngto care about (one's) health

Synonyms

在乎zàihu

在乎 means 'to mind / to care about' in the sense of being bothered by something (我不在乎 — I don't mind). 关心 is warm, nurturing concern; 在乎 is whether something affects you. 'I care about you' = 我关心你; 'I care what you think' = 我在乎你怎么想。

照顾zhàogù

照顾 means 'to take care of / look after' — physical, practical care (照顾老人 — take care of the elderly). 关心 is emotional and attentional. You 关心 someone you can't be there to 照顾.

Don't confuse 关心 with

关系guānxi

关系 (noun) is a relationship; 关心 (verb) is to care about. Same first character, different parts of speech and meanings. 我们的关系 (our relationship) vs 我关心你 (I care about you).

小心xiǎoxīn

小心 ('be careful') also contains 心 but means caution about danger. 关心 is emotional concern; 小心 is physical caution. 小心车 (watch out for cars) ≠ 关心车.

FAQ

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