债务 (zhài wù) — debt; liability | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

债务 (zhàiwù) is a formal noun meaning 'debt, liability' — it refers to the legal or financial obligation itself (e.g., company debt, national debt). It contrasts with 债 (zhài), which is a shorter, more general noun for 'debt' (often used in everyday contexts like 欠债 'owe a debt'), and with 欠 (qiàn), a verb meaning 'to owe'. 债券 (zhàiquàn) is a specific financial instrument ('bond'), not a general debt.

noun

debtliability

Examples

债务。
Gōngsī bìxū jǐnkuài huán qīng suǒyǒu zhài wù.
The company must pay off all its debts as soon as possible.
债务。
Tā yīnwèi zhài wù wèntí ér shīmián.
He lost sleep over his debt problems.
。
Guójiā de wài zhài wù zhèngzài zhúnián jiǎnshǎo.
The country's foreign debt is decreasing year by year.

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