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劝告 (quàn gào) — (verb) to advise, to urge; (noun) advice, exhortation

Definition

Both a verb ('to advise/urge') and a noun ('the advice given'). Stronger and more earnest than 劝 — you 劝告 someone specifically because you think it matters. Compare 嘱咐/叮嘱 (warm concern) and 忠告 (formal counsel).

verb
to adviseto urge
noun
adviceexhortation
Measure word · 席

Examples

  • 劝告。
    Tā quàn gào wǒ duō xiū xi.
    He advised me to rest more.
  • 劝告。
    Wǒ jiē shòu le tā de quàn gào.
    I accepted his advice.
  • 劝告。
    Tā de yì xí quàn gào ràng wǒ shòu yì fěi qiǎn.
    His piece of advice benefited me greatly.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

劝quànadvise
告gàotell

“劝” and “告” both involve urging or telling, so together they mean giving advice.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 勸; 劝 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
力力lìstrength
Sound part声符shēngfú
雚
雚guàn勸quàn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 勸 pairs 力 (strength) with 雚 as a sound part; the simplified 劝 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 劝 →

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

The origin is unclear: one theory sees 告 as 壴 (a decorated drum) above 口 (an open mouth), while another sees a tongue sticking out of 口.

Open 告 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Communication & Speech

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