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手下 (shǒu xià) — (position word) under the command or leadership of someone; (noun) subordinates, people working under one's authority; (idiomatic) financial resources currently available

Definition

手下 literally means 'under the hand' and has two main uses: the people who work under you (subordinates), and — from the speaker's side — the money or resources currently on hand to spend.

noun
(position word) under the command or leadership of someonesubordinates, people working under one's authority(idiomatic) financial resources currently available
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 手下。
    Hěn duō rén zài tā shǒu xià gōng zuò le hǎo jǐ nián.
    Many people have worked under him for several years.
  • 手下。
    Tā de shǒu xià gè gè dōu hěn néng gàn.
    Every one of his subordinates is very capable.
  • 手下。
    Wǒ shǒu xià de qián bú gòu mǎi zhè yàng guì zhòng de dōng xī.
    I don't have enough money on hand to buy something this expensive.

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.

手shǒuhand
下xiàbelow

手 means hand and 下 means below, giving the sense of being under someone's hand.

Characters in this word

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

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →

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 →
Appears in
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