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传教 (chuán jiào) — to do missionary work; to proselytize; (formal) to transmit directives or instructions

Definition

Literally 'transmit religion/teaching': 传 the religion + 教 the doctrine. Used for organized missionary work, usually in a religious sense (cf. 传教士 'missionary'). The formal 'transmit directives' sense is rare and context-dependent.

verb
to do missionary workto proselytize(formal) to transmit directives or instructions

Examples

  • 传教。
    Tā nián qīng shí qù fēi zhōu chuán jiào.
    He went to Africa to do missionary work when he was young.
  • 。
    Zhè wèi chuán jiào shì zài zhōng guó chuán le shí nián jiào.
    This missionary did missionary work in China for ten years.
  • 19传教。
    Hěn duō xī fāng chuán jiào shì zài 19 shì jì lái yà zhōu chuán jiào.
    Many Western missionaries came to Asia to do missionary work in the 19th century.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

传chuántransmit
教jiàoteaching

传 means pass on and 教 means teaching, so 传教 is passing on a teaching.

Characters in this word

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 傳; 传 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
人人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
專
專zhuān傳chuán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 傳 puts 人 (man) beside 專, which gives the sound; the simplified 传 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the historical ones.

Open 传 →

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
子子zǐchild
攵Written in full as攴pūteaching cane; stick that represents authority
Sound part声符shēngfú
爻
爻yáo教jiào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

教 uses 爻 for its sound and puts 子 (child) with 攵 (攴), a teaching cane, to show teaching a child.

Open 教 →
Appears in
Religion & Belief

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