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协商 (xié shāng) — to negotiate; to consult with; to talk things over

Definition

正式地 'to consult / negotiate' (e.g. between sides) — more formal than 商议 and 洽谈, and less high-stakes than 谈判. Common in diplomatic, policy, and business contexts.

verb
to negotiateto consult withto talk things over

Examples

  • 协商。
    Shuāng fāng zhèng zài xié shāng hé zuò xì jié.
    The two sides are negotiating the details of cooperation.
  • 协商，。
    Jīng guò duō cì xié shāng, tā men zhōng yú dá chéng le gòng shí.
    After many rounds of consultation, they finally reached a consensus.
  • 协商。
    Zhè ge wèn tí xū yào dà jiā gòng tóng xié shāng jiě jué.
    This problem requires everyone to discuss and resolve it together.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

协xiéconsult
商shāngconsult

协 and 商 both carry the sense of consulting, giving the idea of talking things over together.

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 協; 协 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 協 uses 劦, meaning 'to collaborate', plus 十 for sound; the simplified 协 is a later shorthand.

Open 协 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 商 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Communication & Speech

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