修养

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. 他很有修养，从不发脾气。▶ —
   He is cultivated and never loses his temper.
2. 读书能提高个人修养。▶ —
   Reading can raise one’s personal cultivation.

Collocations

Mnemonic

修 xiū "to cultivate, refine" + 养 yǎng "to nurture": what one cultivates and nurtures, i.e. self-cultivation, refinement. Same as the Korean word su-yang (修養). The character and refinement ingrained by honing learning, morality and art (个人修养 personal cultivation, 文化修养 cultural refinement). Unlike inborn 天赋 or the broad 素质, 修养 focuses on the personal depth achieved by one’s own cultivation. 修 means "to cultivate" (修炼, 修身); 养 means "to nurture" (培养, 养成).

Related

Quick check

1. What is the focus of 修养?

   • personal depth achieved by self-cultivation
   • inborn talent
   • an index from a test
   • money-making ability