订购 (dìng gòu) — to place an order (for goods, products); to sub… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

订购 means 'to order goods' or 'to subscribe to a service.' Unlike 预订 (reserve in advance) it covers both one-time purchases and subscriptions; for subscribe to publications, 订阅 is the more standard term.

verb

to place an order (for goods, products)to subscribe (to a service, publication, etc.)

Examples

订购。
Wǒ zài wǎng shàng dìng gòu le yì běn xīn shū.
I ordered a new book online.
订购。
Tā dìng gòu le yí fèn nián dù zá zhì.
He subscribed to an annual magazine.
订购。
Gōng sī xū yào dìng gòu yì xiē bàn gōng yòng pǐn.
The company needs to order some office supplies.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

订 (order) and 购 (buy) together express placing an order to buy.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 訂; 订 is its simplified writing.

言丁訂

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

丁

丁dīng訂dìng

Same sound today

The traditional form 訂 combines 言, related to speech, with 丁, which gives the sound; the simplified 订 is a later shorthand.

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 購; 购 is its simplified writing.

貝冓購

Meaning part形符xíngfú

貝貝bèishellfish

Sound part声符shēngfú

冓

冓gòu購gòu

Same sound today

The traditional form 購 pairs 貝, a shellfish, with 冓, which gives the sound; the simplified 购 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Shopping & Errands

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