TongTong
Sign in

争论 (zhēng lùn) — to argue; to debate

Definition

争论 is a neutral verb for 'to argue / debate,' usually over ideas or issues (often written 争论). 争吵 is more heated and personal (a quarrel), while 辩论 is a formal, structured debate.

verb
to argueto debate
Measure word · 次, 场

Examples

  • 争论。
    Bú yào wèi le xiǎo shì zhēng lùn.
    Don't argue over trivial matters.
  • 争论，。
    Tā men zhēng lùn le hěn jiǔ, hái shì méi yǒu jié guǒ.
    They argued for a long time but still had no result.
  • 争论。
    Dà jiā dōu zài zhēng lùn zhè ge wèn tí.
    Everyone is debating this issue.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

争zhēngcontend
论lùndiscuss

争 means contend and 论 means discuss; together they mean argue or debate.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 爭; 争 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 爭 shows two hands on a plowshare; the simplified 争 is a later abbreviation, so this picture belongs to 爭, not 争.

Open 争 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 論; 论 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánsay
Sound part声符shēngfú
侖
侖lún論lùn
Same sound today

The traditional form 論 pairs 言 (“say”) with 侖 as a sound component; the simplified 论 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 论 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 5Conflict & Agreement5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 6 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.