嗜好

しこう

taste, liking, preference

JLPT N1

Character Breakdown

Meaning and Usage

嗜好 (shìhào) refers to a person's personal tastes, preferences, or hobbies. It is often used to describe what someone likes to do in their leisure time or their particular fondness for something.

Common Contexts

This word is commonly used in formal or written contexts to talk about hobbies, interests, or preferences, especially when emphasizing personal inclination rather than casual liking.

Collocations and Patterns

  • 嗜好习惯 (shìhào xíguàn): habitual preferences or tastes
  • 嗜好广泛 (shìhào guǎngfàn): having wide-ranging interests
  • 饮食嗜好 (yǐnshí shìhào): dietary preferences

Usage Notes

嗜好 often implies a stronger or more established liking than just 喜欢. It can also carry a nuance of a habitual or characteristic preference. Avoid confusing it with 爱好 (àihào), which also means hobby but is more common in everyday speech. 嗜好 tends to be more formal or literary.

Summary

Use 嗜好 when you want to express someone's characteristic tastes or hobbies in a slightly formal or descriptive way, especially in writing or when emphasizing the depth or habitual nature of the preference.

Example Sentences

His hobby is collecting stamps.

Everyone has different hobbies; some like sports, others like reading.

He has a strong liking for gourmet food and often tries various new dishes.