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交往 (jiāo wǎng) — to associate with; to have social contact with; to date (romantically)

Definition

交往 emphasizes ongoing social interaction — associating with people over time, including romantic dating. 比 联系 (one-off contact) more sustained; 相处 focuses purely on getting along, not the relationship itself.

verb
to associate withto have social contact withto date (romantically)

Examples

  • 交往。
    Wǒ hé lín jū jīng cháng jiāo wǎng.
    I often associate with my neighbor.
  • 交往，。
    Tā men jiāo wǎng le liǎng nián, yǐ jīng jié hūn le.
    They dated for two years and are already married.
  • 交往。
    Gōng sī zhī jiān tōng guò huì yì jiāo wǎng.
    Companies associate with each other through meetings.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

交jiāocontact
往wǎngvisit

交往 joins 交 for contact with 往 for coming and going, giving social interaction.

Characters in this word

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

交 originally drew a human with crossed legs. In the modern shape, the upper part resembles a standing person.

Open 交 →

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
止止zhǐfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
王
王wáng往wǎng
Same sound today

The form that became 往 paired 止, a foot, with 王 for the sound; a stepping part was later added, and the right side changed.

Open 往 →
Appears in
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