rèqíng: 热情 - Enthusiastic, Warm, Passionate, Cordial

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• Summary: Discover the meaning of 热情 (rèqíng), a fundamental Chinese term for enthusiasm, warmth, and passion. This page explains how 热情 is more than just a personal feeling; it's a crucial social quality in China, especially related to hospitality and making others feel welcome. Learn how to use it correctly to describe people, passions, and the energetic atmosphere of modern China.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): rèqíng
• Part of Speech: Adjective / Noun
• HSK Level: HSK 3
• Concise Definition: To be enthusiastic, warm-hearted, passionate, or cordial towards people, activities, or life in general.
• In a Nutshell: 热情 (rèqíng) is the feeling of “hot emotion.” It's the positive, energetic, and friendly vibe a person gives off. While it can describe a personal passion for a hobby, it's most often used to describe how someone treats others—with warmth, friendliness, and a welcoming spirit. Think of a host who insists you eat more food, a tour guide excited to show you their city, or the roaring energy of a crowd at a concert. That's 热情.

• 热 (rè): This character means “hot,” “heat,” or “fever.” The four dots at the bottom (灬) are a radical that often represents fire, visually connecting the character to the concept of heat.
• 情 (qíng): This character means “feeling,” “emotion,” “sentiment,” or “passion.” The heart radical on the left (忄) signifies that it relates to matters of the heart and emotions.
• Combined Meaning: When you put “hot” (热) and “feeling” (情) together, you get 热情 (rèqíng)—literally “hot feelings.” This perfectly captures the essence of the word: a strong, warm, and energetic emotional state.

In Chinese culture, 热情 (rèqíng) is a highly valued social virtue. It's not just a personality trait but an expected behavior in many social situations, especially when hosting guests. Showing 热情 is a way of giving your guest 面子 (miànzi), or “face,” making them feel honored and respected. This contrasts with the Western concept of “passion,” which can be a very private and individualistic pursuit (e.g., “a quiet passion for stamp collecting”). In China, 热情 is more often an outward, social performance. A host who is 热情 will be proactive in offering food, drinks, and conversation, ensuring the guest feels completely taken care of. This concept of active, warm hospitality, or 热情好客 (rèqíng hàokè), is central to building good 关系 (guānxi), or social relationships. To be described as 不热情 (bù rèqíng), or “not enthusiastic/warm,” can be a significant social criticism, implying someone is cold, aloof, or a poor host.

热情 is an extremely common word used in daily life.

• As an Adjective (Describing People): This is the most common usage. It describes someone's personality as warm, friendly, and approachable.
  • e.g., `中国人很热情。` (Chinese people are very warm/hospitable.)
• As an Adjective (Describing Actions/Atmosphere): It can describe a welcome, a speech, applause, etc.
  • e.g., `我们受到了热情的欢迎。` (We received a warm welcome.)
• As a Noun (Describing a State of Being): It can mean “enthusiasm” or “passion,” often used with verbs like `有 (yǒu)` (to have) or `失去 (shīqù)` (to lose).
  • e.g., `他对工作充满了热情。` (He is full of passion for his work.)

The connotation is almost always positive. It's the standard for good customer service, good hosting, and being a good friend.

• Example 1:
  • 他是一个非常热情的人，总是帮助邻居。
  • Pinyin: Tā shì yīgè fēicháng rèqíng de rén, zǒngshì bāngzhù línjū.
  • English: He is a very warm-hearted person and always helps his neighbors.
  • Analysis: This is a classic example of using 热情 to describe someone's kind and friendly personality.
• Example 2:
  • 谢谢你们热情的招待！
  • Pinyin: Xièxiè nǐmen rèqíng de zhāodài!
  • English: Thank you for your warm hospitality!
  • Analysis: A crucial phrase for any guest in China. Here, 热情 acts as an adjective modifying `招待 (zhāodài)`, meaning “hospitality” or “to host.”
• Example 3:
  • 她对学习中文很有热情。
  • Pinyin: Tā duì xuéxí Zhōngwén hěn yǒu rèqíng.
  • English: She has a lot of enthusiasm for learning Chinese.
  • Analysis: This shows 热情 used as a noun with the structure `对…有热情` (duì…yǒu rèqíng), meaning “to have enthusiasm for…”
• Example 4:
  • 观众们报以热情的掌声。
  • Pinyin: Guānzhòngmen bàoyǐ rèqíng de zhǎngshēng.
  • English: The audience responded with enthusiastic applause.
  • Analysis: Here, 热情 describes the quality of the applause, indicating it was loud and energetic.
• Example 5:
  • 尽管遇到了很多困难，他还是没有失去对生活的热情。
  • Pinyin: Jǐnguǎn yùdào le hěnduō kùnnán, tā háishì méiyǒu shīqù duì shēnghuó de rèqíng.
  • English: Despite encountering many difficulties, he still hasn't lost his passion for life.
  • Analysis: This demonstrates 热情 as a noun representing a general “zest for life” or “passion for living.”
• Example 6:
  • 这家店的服务员都特别热情。
  • Pinyin: Zhè jiā diàn de fúwùyuán dōu tèbié rèqíng.
  • English: The staff at this shop are all especially enthusiastic/friendly.
  • Analysis: In a service context, 热情 is the gold standard. It means the staff are proactive, smiling, and eager to help.
• Example 7:
  • 他的热情很快就冷淡下来了。
  • Pinyin: Tā de rèqíng hěn kuài jiù lěngdàn xiàlái le.
  • English: His enthusiasm cooled down very quickly.
  • Analysis: This sentence uses 热情 as a noun and contrasts it with its antonym, `冷淡 (lěngdàn)`, showing that this “hot feeling” can fade.
• Example 8:
  • 我代表公司，向各位的到来表示热情的欢迎。
  • Pinyin: Wǒ dàibiǎo gōngsī, xiàng gèwèi de dàolái biǎoshì rèqíng de huānyíng.
  • English: On behalf of the company, I'd like to extend a warm welcome to all of you.
  • Analysis: This is a formal use of the term, common in speeches and official welcomes.
• Example 9:
  • 刚开始，他对这个项目充满热情，但现在不是了。
  • Pinyin: Gāng kāishǐ, tā duì zhège xiàngmù chōngmǎn rèqíng, dàn xiànzài bùshì le.
  • English: In the beginning, he was full of enthusiasm for this project, but not anymore.
  • Analysis: The phrase `充满热情 (chōngmǎn rèqíng)` literally means “filled with enthusiasm” and is a common collocation.
• Example 10:
  • 导游热情地为我们介绍了每个景点。
  • Pinyin: Dǎoyóu rèqíng de wèi wǒmen jièshào le měi gè jǐngdiǎn.
  • English: The tour guide enthusiastically introduced each scenic spot to us.
  • Analysis: Here, `热情地 (rèqíng de)` is an adverb, describing *how* the action of introducing was performed—with energy and warmth.

• `热情` vs. English “Passion”: This is a critical distinction. In English, you can say, “My passion is music.” A direct translation, `我的热情是音乐 (Wǒ de rèqíng shì yīnyuè)`, sounds very unnatural in Chinese. 热情 is the *enthusiasm you have for* music, not the music itself.
  • Incorrect: `我的热情是篮球。` (Wǒ de rèqíng shì lánqiú.)
  • Correct: `我对篮球很有热情。` (Wǒ duì lánqiú hěn yǒu rèqíng.) - “I have a lot of enthusiasm for basketball.”
  • Better: `我热爱打篮球。` (Wǒ rè'ài dǎ lánqiú.) - “I ardently love playing basketball.”
• `热情` vs. Romantic/Sexual Passion: 热情 is generally not used for intense romantic or sexual desire. It describes a warm, friendly personality, which can certainly be part of a romantic relationship, but it lacks the intensity of “fiery passion.” For that, the word 激情 (jīqíng) is more appropriate. Calling a romantic partner 热情 just means they are warm and affectionate, not necessarily “passionate” in the Western romantic sense.

• 好客 (hàokè): Hospitable. Often appears with 热情 in the set phrase `热情好客 (rèqíng hàokè)`, meaning “warm and hospitable.”
• 积极 (jījí): Proactive, positive. Describes a person's attitude towards a task or goal. You can be `积极` about your work but not necessarily `热情` toward your colleagues.
• 激情 (jīqíng): Intense passion, fervor. Stronger and more intense than 热情, often used for romantic passion or fiery devotion to a cause.
• 热爱 (rè'ài): To love deeply. A verb describing a deep and abiding love for something (e.g., your country, your work, a hobby). 热情 is the enthusiastic feeling that stems from this love.
• 冷淡 (lěngdàn): Cold, indifferent. The most direct antonym of 热情.
• 兴趣 (xìngqù): Interest. This is the baseline level of liking something. 热情 is a much higher degree of energetic interest.
• 欢迎 (huānyíng): To welcome. An action. 热情 is the feeling or manner with which you perform that action.
• 招待 (zhāodài): To host, to entertain guests. The duty of a host, which should be performed with 热情.
• 活泼 (huópō): Lively, vivacious. Often used to describe children or young people. It's about energy and movement, while 热情 is about emotional warmth and friendliness.