对抗 (duì kàng) — to resist, to confront, to oppose

Definition

对抗 means to actively fight back against something (illness, injustice, an enemy) — stronger and more active than 抵抗 ('to resist/withstand'), and implies real opposition rather than just 面对 ('to face').

verb

to resistto confrontto oppose

Examples

对抗。
Wǒ men bì xū duì kàng zhè zhǒng bù gōng píng de dài yù.
We must resist this unfair treatment.
对抗。
Zhè zhǒng yì miáo néng bāng zhù shēn tǐ duì kàng bìng dú.
This vaccine can help the body fight viruses.
对抗。
Tā men yòng fǎ lǜ shǒu duàn duì kàng fǔ bài xíng wéi.
They use legal means to confront corrupt behavior.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

对duìconfront

抗kàngresist

对 and 抗 both express opposing or resisting, so together they mean to stand against someone.

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 對; 对 is its simplified writing.

丵丵zhuótool for digging
土土tǔearth
又又yòuhand

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 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

扌亢抗

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒu

Sound part声符shēngfú

亢

亢kàng抗kàng

Same sound today

抗 is made from 扌, a written form of 手 (hand), and 亢, which gives the sound.

Open 抗 →

Appears in