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议事 (yì shì) — to discuss (official) business

Definition

A formal verb meaning to discuss or deliberate official business, typically in a meeting or governmental context. More formal and procedural than the everyday 谈 or 商量, which fit casual conversation.

verb
to discuss (official) business

Examples

  • 议事。
    Wǒ men míng tiān xià wǔ kāi huì yì shì.
    We'll have a meeting tomorrow afternoon to discuss business.
  • 。
    Jīn tiān shàng wǔ wǒ men yì le yí gè xiǎo shí de shì.
    This morning we discussed matters for an hour.
  • 议事。
    Tā men zhèng zài fáng jiān lǐ yì shì.
    They are discussing business in the room.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

议yìdiscuss
事shìaffairs

议 means discuss and 事 means affairs, together giving the sense of discussing affairs.

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 議; 议 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yántalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
義
義yì議⁰yì
Same sound today

The traditional form 議 pairs 言 (talk) with 義 as a sound component; the simplified 议 is a later shorthand.

Open 议 →

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

In 事, 又 is a hand and 中 is a flagpole with a drum; holding a flag in hand depicts performing a job.

Open 事 →
Appears in
Communication & SpeechGovernment & Politics

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