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作对 (zuò duì) — to oppose, to set oneself against (someone)

Definition

作对 means to set yourself against someone personally — being difficult or antagonistic toward a specific person. 反对 is the neutral word for opposing an idea or proposal.

verb
to opposeto set oneself against (someone)

Examples

  • 作对？。
    Nǐ wèi shén me yào gēn wǒ zuò duì? wǒ men míng míng shì péng you.
    Why do you oppose me? We are clearly friends.
  • 作对，。
    Tā lǎo shì gēn tóng xué zuò duì, dà jiā dōu bù xǐ huan tā.
    He always sets himself against his classmates, so nobody likes him.
  • 作对，。
    Bié gēn wǒ zuò duì, fǒu zé nǐ huì hòu huǐ de.
    Don't oppose me, or you'll regret it.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

作zuòmake; do
对duìpair; opponent

作 means make and 对 can mean pair or opponent, giving make a pair or set oneself against.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
乍
乍zhà作zuò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left side 亻 comes from 人, meaning 'person', and the right side 乍 gives the sound.

Open 作 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 對; 对 is its simplified writing.

For the traditional form 對, the shape comes from an early drawing of 丵 (a digging tool), 土 (earth), and 又 (a hand); it may have meant developing land.

Open 对 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Conflict & Agreement

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