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升级 (shēng jí) — to upgrade, to promote (to a higher level, grade, or version); to escalate (in intensity or seriousness)

Definition

升级 means to upgrade or promote to a higher level, grade, or version (software, products, personnel). For software specifically, 更新 (gēngxīn) is more common as 'to update'; use 升温 for temperature or a situation heating up, not 升级.

verb
to upgradeto promote (to a higher level, grade, or version)to escalate (in intensity or seriousness)

Examples

  • 升级。
    Gōng sī jué dìng duì quán tǐ yuán gōng jìn xíng jì néng shēng jí péi xùn.
    The company decided to provide skill-upgrade training for all employees.
  • 升级。
    Zhè ge ruǎn jiàn xū yào shēng jí dào zuì xīn bǎn běn cái néng shǐ yòng.
    This software needs to be upgraded to the latest version before it can be used.
  • 升级，。
    Shuāng fāng de máo dùn zhú jiàn shēng jí, zuì hòu fā shēng le chōng tū.
    The conflict between the two sides gradually escalated, and eventually a clash occurred.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

升shēngrise
级jílevel

Rising 升 through a level 级 gives upgrade or promotion.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape comes from a drawing of a standard dipper used to measure one 升.

Open 升 →

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 級; 级 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糹Written in full as糸mìthread
Sound part声符shēngfú
及
及jí級jí
Same sound today

The traditional form 級 has 糹 (thread) and 及 as a sound part; its original sense was a sequence related to silk. The simplified 级 is a later shorthand.

Open 级 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5Change & Process

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