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保护 (bǎo hù) — to protect

Definition

保护 means 'to protect' someone or something valuable from harm. It is broader than 防, which focuses on guarding against a specific threat.

verb
to protect
Measure word · 种

Examples

  • 保护。
    Měi gè rén dōu yīng gāi bǎo hù huán jìng.
    Everyone should protect the environment.
  • 保护。
    Mā ma bǎo hù hái zi bú shòu shāng hài.
    Mother protects children from harm.
  • 保护。
    Fǎ lǜ bǎo hù dà jiā de ān quán.
    The law protects everyone's safety.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

保bǎoprotect
护hùguard

保 and 护 both mean guard; together they mean to protect from harm.

Characters in this word

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

保 originally showed a person 人 carrying a child 子 on their back, which led to the sense of protecting.

Open 保 →

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
扌Written in full as手shǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
户
户hù护hù
Same sound today

护 combines 扌 (the hand form 手) with 户, which gives the sound hù.

Open 护 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 4HSK 2.0 Level 41000 Most Frequent Chinese WordsSafety & Danger2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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