backbone; mainstay; one's own judgment
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
2 senses · 8 examplesnoun
backbone; mainstay; reliable person or thing one can count on
Often used with verbs like 有/没有/成了. In colloquial speech, can take the 儿 suffix as 主心骨儿.
Nǐ你
lái来
le了
，
wǒ我
kě可
yǒu有
le了
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
le了
！
Now that you're here, I finally have someone I can rely on!
Tā他
shì是
wǒ我
men们
qiú球
duì队
de的
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
。
He is the backbone of our team.
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Fù父
qīn亲
qù去
shì世
hòu后
，
jiā家
lǐ里
méi没
le了
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
。
After father passed away, the family lost its mainstay.
Zhè这
bǐ笔
qián钱
chéng成
le了
tā他
chuàng创
yè业
de的
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
。
This sum of money became the backbone of his startup.
noun
one's own judgment; mind; definite ideas of one's own
Commonly used in negative constructions such as 没了主心骨 (to lose one's head/be at a loss).
Shì事
qing情
lái来
de得
tài太
tū突
rán然
，
yī一
shí时
jiān间
wǒ我
yě也
méi没
le了
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
。
The matter arose so suddenly that for a moment I lost my bearings.
Tā他
shì是
ge个
yǒu有
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
de的
rén人
，
bù不
huì会
suí随
bō波
zhú逐
liú流
。
He is a man with his own mind who won't just drift with the current.
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Zuò做
lǐng领
dǎo导
yào要
yǒu有
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
，
bù不
néng能
rén人
yún云
yì亦
yún云
。
A leader must have a mind of his own and not simply parrot what others say.
Zhè这
hái孩
zi子
zhǎng长
dà大
le了
，
yuè越
lái来
yuè越
yǒu有
zhǔ主
xīn心
gǔ骨
le了
。
This child has grown up and is increasingly developing his own judgment.