招贤纳士 (zhāo xián nà shì) — (chengyu) to recruit talented people; to seek out and employ capable individuals

Definition

A formal chengyu meaning 'to recruit talented people,' used for companies or states seeking capable individuals. The phrasing is literary and dignified — typical of job postings or company announcements, not casual conversation.

idiom
(chengyu) to recruit talented peopleto seek out and employ capable individuals

Examples

  • 招贤纳士，。
    Zhè jiā gōng sī zhèng zài zhāo xián nà shì, xī wàng zhǎo dào yōu xiù de rén cái.
    This company is recruiting talented people, hoping to find excellent talent.
  • ，招贤纳士，。
    Wèi le fā zhǎn xīn xiàng mù, tā men jué dìng zhāo xián nà shì, kuò dà tuán duì.
    To develop new projects, they decided to recruit talent and expand the team.
  • 招贤纳士，。
    Hěn duō qǐ yè dōu huì zài bì yè jì zhāo xián nà shì, xī yǐn yīng jiè bì yè shēng.
    Many companies recruit talent during graduation season to attract new graduates.

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
召
召zhào招zhāo
Same sound today

招 pairs 扌, the hand part, with 召, which gives the sound, to show beckoning with the hand.

Open 招 →

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 賢; 贤 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèimoney
Sound part声符shēngfú
臤
臤qiān賢xián
Same sound today

The traditional form 賢 pairs 貝 (money) with 臤 for sound to write 'worthy/valuable, like money'. The simplified 贤 is a later abbreviation, so its parts are not the historical pieces.

Open 贤 →

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 納; 纳 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk, thin thread
Sound part声符shēngfú
内
内nèi納nà
Same sound today

The traditional form 納 has 糸 (silk, thin thread) and 内, which gives the sound; the simplified 纳 is a shorthand.

Open 纳 →

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

The shape 士 comes from a simple drawing of a war axe. The character later came to mean a soldier, officer, or intellectual.

Open 士 →

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