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见证 (jiàn zhèng) — (verb) to witness, to see firsthand and be able to testify to; (noun) witness (evidence), testimony (especially historical)

Definition

见证 emphasizes personal, firsthand witnessing — being there to attest to an event or change. 证明 is logical proof or a document, 证据 is physical evidence, and 做证 is testimony given in court.

verb
to witness, to see firsthand and be able to testify to
noun
witness (evidence)testimony (especially historical)

Examples

  • 见证。
    Wǒ jiàn zhèng le zhè zuò chéng shì de jù dà biàn huà.
    I witnessed the huge changes in this city.
  • 见证。
    Lǎo fáng zi shì jiā zú lì shǐ de jiàn zhèng.
    The old house is a witness to the family's history.
  • 见证。
    Zhè xiē shū xìn shì tā yǒu yì de jiàn zhèng.
    These letters are testimony to his friendship.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

见jiànsee
证zhèngtestify

“见” (see) and “证” (testify) combine to mean witness or evidence.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 見; 见 is its simplified writing.

  • 目目mùeye
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

The traditional form 見 pairs 目 (eye) with 卩 (kneeling person), showing a kneeling figure with a large eye for a head. The simplified 见 is a later shorthand.

Open 见 →

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 證; 证 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
登
登dēng證zhèng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 證 pairs 言, a words/speech part, with 登 as a sound clue; the simplified 证 is a later shorthand.

Open 证 →
Appears in
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