吃得开 (chī de kāi) — to be popular or well-liked (in a certain place or field); to be effective or successful (of methods, strategies)

Definition

吃得开 means to be popular and influential within a particular circle — a person, method, or approach that 'goes over well' locally. The 得 here is a structural particle (complement of degree), not the modal verb 得 (děi, 'must').

verb
to be popular or well-liked (in a certain place or field)to be effective or successful (of methods, strategies)

Examples

  • 吃得开，。
    Tā zài gōng sī hěn chī de kāi, dà jiā dōu yuàn yì gēn tā hé zuò.
    He is very popular at the company; everyone is willing to cooperate with him.
  • 吃得开。
    Zhè zhǒng xīn fāng fǎ zài shì chǎng shàng hěn chī de kāi.
    This new method is very successful in the market.
  • 吃得开，。
    Tā zhè ge rén dào nǎ r dōu chī de kāi, péng you tè bié duō.
    This guy is popular wherever he goes — he has a lot of friends.

Origin

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
乞
乞qǐ吃chī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

吃 combines 口 (mouth) with 乞, which gives the sound; it originally wrote a word meaning to stutter.

Open 吃 →

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

The old form 㝵 showed a hand picking up a cowry, meaning to obtain; later changes turned that picture into 得.

Open 得 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 開; 开 is its simplified writing.

  • 門門méndoor
  • 一一yīlatch and/or wooden pole that shuts a door
  • 廾廾gǒnga pair of hands

The traditional form 開 shows 廾, a pair of hands, and 一, a latch or pole, inside 門, a door: hands opening a latched door. The simplified 开 is a shorthand form, so its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 开 →

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