传授 (chuán shòu) — to impart, to pass on (knowledge, skills, etc.)

Definition

传授 focuses on directly handing down knowledge or skills to a person (often a student or apprentice). 传承 stresses passing heritage forward across generations, and 灌输 is forceful ‘instilling’ of ideas.

verb

to impartto pass on (knowledge, skills, etc.)

Examples

传授。
Lǎo shī bǎ zhī shi chuán shòu gěi xué shēng.
The teacher imparts knowledge to the students.
传授。
Tā bǎ zì jǐ de fāng fǎ chuán shòu gěi le tú dì.
He passed on his own methods to his apprentice.
传授。
Jiào shòu xiàng xué shēng chuán shòu zhī shi.
The professor imparts knowledge to the students.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

传chuánpass on

授shòugive or teach

Both parts are actions: one means pass on, the other means give or teach, so together they describe handing down knowledge or skill.

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 傳; 传 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

人人rénman

Sound part声符shēngfú

專

專zhuān傳chuán

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 傳 puts 人 (man) beside 專, which gives the sound; the simplified 传 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the historical ones.

Open 传 →

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

手手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

受

受shòu授shòu

Same sound today

授 is built from 手 and 受. 受 gives the sound, and 手 is a hand.

Open 授 →

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 6 HSK 2.0 Level 6 Communication & Speech School & Education