省力 (shěng lì) — to save effort, to save energy or labor

Definition

Means 'to save effort' — describes a method, tool, or way of doing something that reduces the work needed. Often paired with 不 to negate (不省力 = laborious, takes a lot of effort).

verb
to save effortto save energy or labor

Examples

  • 省力。
    Zhè ge fāng fǎ hěn shěng lì.
    This method saves a lot of effort.
  • 。
    Tā shěng le bù shǎo lì.
    He saved quite a bit of effort.
  • 省力。
    Yòng zhè ge gōng jù kě yǐ shěng lì.
    Using this tool can save effort.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

省shěngsave
力lìeffort

省 means save and 力 means effort, giving saving effort.

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.

The upper part of 省 is a changed form of 生, which gave the sound, while the lower 目 is an eye; the picture showed looking closely or inspecting.

Open 省 →

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

力 is drawn as either an arm bending out from the side of the body or a wooden plough.

Open 力 →

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