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看成 (kàn chéng) — to regard as, to take for (especially in 把…看成… pattern); to be able to see or watch (with a resultative sense)

Definition

看成 is a resultative verb meaning 'to regard as / take for' (我把她看成朋友 'I took her for a friend'). The 看不成 pattern means 'can't make out / unable to see' — a result complement, not a passive.

verb
to regard asto take for (especially in 把…看成… pattern)to be able to see or watch (with a resultative sense)

Examples

  • 。
    Bú yào bǎ wǒ kàn chéng nà zhǒng rén.
    Don't take me for that kind of person.
  • 。
    Tā bǎ zhè ge shī bài kàn chéng yí cì chéng zhǎng de jī huì.
    He regards this failure as a growth opportunity.
  • ，。
    Zì tài xiǎo le, wǒ kàn bù chéng.
    The characters are too small; I can't see them clearly.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

看kànsee
成chéngbecome

看 denotes seeing and 成 becoming, so one thing is taken as becoming another.

Characters in this word

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

The shape 看 puts 手 (hand) over 目 (eye), showing a hand placed above the eyes to gaze into the distance.

Open 看 →

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
戊戊wù
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng成chéng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

成 puts 戊, a weapon, beside 丁, which gives the sound. The weapon part relates to protection, as in the old sense of city walls.

Open 成 →
Appears in
Thinking & Cognition

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