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力争 (lì zhēng) — to strive for, to work hard for, to do one's utmost to achieve

Definition

Stresses doing one's utmost to reach a specific goal, more forceful than 争取 (which emphasizes fighting for a right or winning support). Pairs with verbs like 取得 / 成为 / 上游; 力求 is a near-parallel written synonym.

verb
to strive forto work hard forto do one's utmost to achieve

Examples

  • 力争。
    Wǒ men lì zhēng zài bǐ sài zhōng qǔ dé hǎo chéng jì.
    We strive to achieve good results in the competition.
  • 力争。
    Tā lì zhēng chéng wéi gōng sī de jīng lǐ.
    He works hard to become the manager of the company.
  • 力争，。
    Wǒ men yào lì zhēng shàng yóu, bú duàn jìn bù.
    We must strive for the top and keep improving.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

力lìeffort
争zhēngstrive

力 as effort and 争 as strive combine to mean work hard for something.

Characters in this word

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

力 is drawn as either an arm bending out from the side of the body or a wooden plough.

Open 力 →

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Will & Intention

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