伸张 (shēn zhāng) — to uphold, to promote (justice, righteousness, etc.)

Definition

伸张 means to uphold or promote (justice, righteousness), with a sense of actively bringing something into effect. Stronger than 维护 (defend/maintain); more action-oriented than 主持 (preside over).

verb
to upholdto promote (justice, righteousness, etc.)

Examples

  • 伸张。
    Tā yì shēng dōu zài wèi shòu hài zhě shēn zhāng zhèng yì.
    He spent his whole life upholding justice for the victims.
  • 伸张。
    Quán shè huì dōu yīng gāi nǔ lì shēn zhāng zhèng qì.
    The whole society should work to promote righteousness.
  • 伸张。
    Fǎ lǜ de zhǔ yào zhí zé shì shēn zhāng gōng zhèng.
    The main duty of the law is to uphold fairness.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

伸shēnextend
张zhāngspread

伸 (extend) and 张 (spread) together mean making something larger or stronger.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
申
申shēn伸shēn
Same sound today

伸 puts 亻, the side form of 人 (person), next to 申, which gives the sound.

Open 伸 →

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 張; 张 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
弓弓gōngbow
Sound part声符shēngfú
長
長cháng張zhāng
Same sound today

The traditional form 張 combines 弓, a bow, with 長, which points to the sound; the simplified 张 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 张 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Law & Justice

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