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管教 (guǎn jiào) — (verb) to discipline, to supervise and educate; (verb, colloquial) to guarantee, to be sure; (noun) discipline, supervision, guidance

Definition

管教 means to discipline or supervise (esp. children) — narrower and more behavioral than 教育 ('educate' broadly) or 指导 ('guide/instruct'). The colloquial sense 'to guarantee' is a casual promise, not a formal commitment.

verb
to disciplineto supervise and educate(verb, colloquial) to guaranteeto be sure
noun
disciplinesupervisionguidance

Examples

  • 管教，。
    Fù mǔ yīng gāi guǎn jiào hái zi, bāng zhù tā men yǎng chéng hǎo xí guàn.
    Parents should discipline their children and help them develop good habits.
  • 管教。
    Xué xiào de guǎn jiào zhì dù fēi cháng yán gé.
    The school's discipline system is very strict.
  • ，管教。
    Nǐ fàng xīn, tā guǎn jiào néng zhǔn shí dào dá.
    Don't worry, I'm sure he can arrive on time.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

管guǎndiscipline
教jiàoteach

管 (discipline) and 教 (teach) together mean to supervise and educate.

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
竹竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
官
官guān管guǎn
Same sound today

管 has 竹 (bamboo) on top to show it relates to bamboo, and 官 gives its sound.

Open 管 →

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
子子zǐchild
攵Written in full as攴pūteaching cane; stick that represents authority
Sound part声符shēngfú
爻
爻yáo教jiào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

教 uses 爻 for its sound and puts 子 (child) with 攵 (攴), a teaching cane, to show teaching a child.

Open 教 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Management

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