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借用 (jiè yòng) — to borrow (something for temporary use); to adopt (an idea, method, experience, etc.)

Definition

借用 means 'borrow' (a thing, a method, an idea) and emphasizes temporary use. Unlike 借 alone, it sounds more formal and is the usual choice for abstract borrowing — adopting an approach or experience — similar to 借鉴.

verb
to borrow (something for temporary use)to adopt (an idea, method, experience, etc.)

Examples

  • 借用，？
    Wǒ jiè yòng nǐ wǔ fēn zhōng, kě yǐ ma?
    Can I borrow five minutes of your time?
  • 借用。
    Tā de yǎn jiǎng jiè yòng le xǔ duō míng yán.
    His speech adopted many famous quotes.
  • 借用。
    Wǒ jiè yòng le tā de chē sān tiān.
    I borrowed his car for three days.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

借jièborrow
用yònguse

'借' and '用' both carry borrow and use senses, so together they express borrowing for use.

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
人人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
昔
昔xī借jiè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

借 combines 人, a person, with 昔, which shows the sound.

Open 借 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

用 was formed by adding a handle to an earlier form.

Open 用 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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