上档次 (shàng dàng cì) — to be up to standard / classy / high-grade

Definition

Means something has reached a higher level of quality or taste — classy, refined, up to standard. Often used for hotels, gifts, decor, or any product that feels upscale. Literally 'go up a grade/tier.'

verb
to be up to standard / classy / high-grade

Examples

  • 上档次。
    Zhè ge jiǔ diàn de fáng jiān hěn shàng dàng cì.
    The rooms in this hotel are quite upscale.
  • 上档次。
    Tā sòng de nà fèn lǐ wù tè bié shàng dàng cì.
    That gift he gave was especially classy.
  • 。
    Zhè jiā cān tīng de zhuāng xiū shàng le dàng cì.
    The decor of this restaurant has been upgraded to a higher standard.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

上shàngreach
档次grade
档dànggrade次cìrank
联合Side by side

上 means reach, and 档次 means grade, so it means to reach a high grade.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

上 is drawn as a short horizontal line placed above a longer arc, marking a position above that arc.

Open 上 →

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 檔; 档 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
木木mùtree
Sound part声符shēngfú
當
當dāng檔dàng
Same sound today

The traditional form 檔 pairs 木, a tree, with 當 as the sound part. The simplified 档 is an abbreviation of 檔.

Open 档 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The old form of 次 shows a person exhaling, with the marks above the figure representing breath.

Open 次 →

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