Correct

怀念 vs 想念 vs 思念

/ huáiniàn vs xiǎngniàn vs sīniàn /
Strokes

Definition

怀念, 想念, and 思念 all are Verbs, which means [cherish the memory of; think of; long to see again think of; long for].

Example

怀念, 想念, and 思念 (Verbs) indicate the unforgettable memory of people, things, environments, etc.
1) 怀念 stresses the memories of the remote past or the dead;

2) 想念 is applied to people alive or things that are available; it can also include the dead;

3) 思念 has the same meaning as the other two, but is literary and not so commonly used;

4) The three words are sometimes interchangeable but have different stresses.
1
Zài
lǎoshě
老舍
dànchén
诞辰
bǎi
一百
zhōunián
周年
de
niànhuì
纪念会
shàng
  
,
huìzhě
与会者
fēnfēn
纷纷
biǎoshì
表示
le
duì
zhè
wèi
zuòjiā
作家
de
shēnqiè
深切
huáiniàn
怀念
  

The participants expressed their deep condolence in succession for Lao She in his 100th anniversary.

2
Jǐnguǎn
尽管
旅居
hǎiwài
海外
duōnián
多年
  
,
dàn
réngrán
仍然
duì
guó
祖国
chōngmǎn
充满
le
shēnhòu
深厚
de
huáiniàn
怀念
  
(
niàn
思念
  
)
zhī
qíng
  

The old oversea Chinese has deep yearning for his motherland though he has been living abroad for many years.

3
xiěxìn
写信
gào
告诉
ma
妈妈
  
,
fēicháng
非常
xiǎngniàn
想念
  
(
niàn
思念
  
)
ba
爸爸
  
ma
妈妈
  

He wrote his mother that he missed her and his father very much.

4
Zhège
这个
qíngjǐng
情景
yǐn
引起
le
duì
wǎngshì
往事
de
niàn
思念
  

The scene reminded him of the past.

5
hěn
huáiniàn
怀念
  
(
xiǎngniàn
想念
  
)
  
(
niàn
思念
  
)
wèi
shìshì
逝世
de
péngyou
朋友
  

He missed his dead friends.

怀念 stresses the recollection of things long ago; 想念 stresses the concrete memory; 思念 also stresses the concrete memory but is more literary.
怀念 is more abstract.
6
Jiǔ
guówài
国外
  
,
nánmiǎn
难免
niàn
思念
  
(
xiǎngniàn
想念
  
)
jiāxiāng
家乡
qīnrén
亲人
  

It's hard not to miss one's native place and family if one lives abroad for a long time.

思念 is literary while 想念 is colloquial.
7
de
wénzhāng
文章
chōngmǎn
充满
le
duì
tóngnián
童年
shēnghuó
生活
de
huáiniàn
怀念
  
(
niàn
思念
  
)
  

Her article is full of nostalgia of childhood life.