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中止 (zhōng zhǐ) — to suspend, to cease, to discontinue

Definition

中止 marks a formal, deliberate stop in the middle of an ongoing activity (a project, surgery, cooperation). It is more official and less neutral than 停止, and gentler than 终止 (a definitive, contract-style end).

verb
to suspendto ceaseto discontinue
Easily confused

Examples

  • ，中止。
    Yóu yú zī jīn bù zú, xiàng mù bèi zhōng zhǐ le.
    The project was suspended due to insufficient funding.
  • 中止。
    Yī shēng bù dé bù zhōng zhǐ shǒu shù.
    The doctor had to stop the surgery.
  • 中止。
    Shuāng fāng tóng yì zhōng zhǐ hé zuò guān xì.
    Both sides agreed to terminate the cooperative relationship.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

中zhōngmidway
止zhǐstop

“中” is midway and “止” is to stop, so the sense is to stop in the middle or suspend.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The original picture showed a flagpole with a drum in the middle, set up in the center of a field.

Open 中 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

止 was drawn as a footprint pointing up, with three toes and a sole, originally showing a foot.

Open 止 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Change & Process

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