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期望 (qī wàng) — to expect; to hope for

Definition

期望 (qīwàng) is a formal 'to expect / to hope for,' often used for goals or outcomes. It carries stronger weight than 期待 (more emotional/anticipatory) and is more earnest than 盼望 (eager longing).

verb
to expectto hope for

Examples

  • 期望。
    Wǒ qī wàng nǐ kǎo shì tōng guò.
    I hope you pass the exam.
  • 期望。
    Xué xiào qī wàng měi gè xué shēng dōu néng cān jiā bǐ sài.
    The school expects every student to participate in the competition.
  • 期望。
    Tā men qī wàng gōng sī wèi lái néng fā zhǎn dé gèng hǎo.
    They hope the company can develop better in the future.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

期qīexpect
望wànghope

期 and 望 both express looking forward, so together they mean earnestly expecting something.

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
日日rì
Sound part声符shēngfú
其
其qí期qī
Same sound today

The original form paired 其 for its sound with 日 (sun). A related form changed that sun to 月, and this later developed into 期.

Open 期 →

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

  • 臣臣chéneye
  • 𡈼𡈼𡈼person standing on the ground

望 originally showed 臣 (eye) beside 𡈼 (person standing on the ground): a person standing up and looking off into the distance. Later 月 was added, and the 臣 part became 亡.

Open 望 →
Appears in
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