减下 (jiǎn xià) — to reduce, to lower (speed, volume, intensity, etc.)

Definition

减下 means to turn down or reduce (speed, volume, cost, intensity). It pairs naturally with a 把 construction (把音量减下) to mark the thing being reduced as the object.

verb
to reduceto lower (speed, volume, intensity, etc.)

Examples

  • 减下，。
    Qǐng jiǎn xià chē sù, qián miàn yǒu xué xiào.
    Please reduce your speed; there's a school ahead.
  • 减下，。
    Tā bǎ yīn liàng jiǎn xià le, yǐ miǎn chǎo dào lín jū.
    He turned down the volume so as not to disturb the neighbors.
  • 减下。
    Gōng sī jué dìng jiǎn xià shēng chǎn chéng běn lái tí gāo lì rùn.
    The company decided to reduce production costs to increase profits.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

减jiǎnreduce
下xiàdown

The sense of 减 (reduce) plus 下 (down) means make something lower or smaller.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 減; 减 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 減 has 氵, water, and 咸, a seal: sealing off a stream of water lessens its flow. The simplified 减 is a later abbreviation.

Open 减 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

下 is drawn as a short horizontal line below a long curved line.

Open 下 →

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