作成 (zuò chéng) — (dialectal verb) to help (someone) accomplish something, to assist in achieving a goal

Definition

作成 (zuō) is a dialectal/colloquial verb meaning 'to help (someone) get something done' — a spoken alternative to 帮助, not standard written Chinese. Used mainly in northern casual speech.

verb
(dialectal verb) to help (someone) accomplish somethingto assist in achieving a goal
Easily confused

Examples

  • 作成。
    Tā zuò chéng wǒ zhǎo dào le hǎo gōng zuò.
    He helped me find a good job.
  • 作成，。
    Duō kuī nǐ zuò chéng, zhè ge jì huà cái shùn lì wán chéng.
    Thanks to your help, this plan was successfully completed.
  • 作成，。
    Zhè jiàn shì nǐ zuò chéng yí xià, wǒ jiù fàng xīn le.
    Just help with this matter and I'll feel at ease.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

作zuòdo
成chéngsucceed

The parts 作 and 成 suggest doing something until it succeeds.

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rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
乍
乍zhà作zuò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left side 亻 comes from 人, meaning 'person', and the right side 乍 gives the sound.

Open 作 →

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
戊戊wù
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng成chéng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

成 puts 戊, a weapon, beside 丁, which gives the sound. The weapon part relates to protection, as in the old sense of city walls.

Open 成 →

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