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商讨 (shāng tǎo) — to discuss; to deliberate

Definition

商讨 (shāngtǎo) is a formal verb for discussing and deliberating on a specific issue, especially between sides reaching agreement. More formal than 讨论/商量, narrower in focus than 酝酿, and more official than 研讨.

verb
to discussto deliberate

Examples

  • 商讨。
    Shuāng fāng dài biǎo zhèng zài shāng tǎo hé zuò shì yí.
    Representatives from both sides are discussing cooperation matters.
  • 商讨。
    Wǒ men xū yào shāng tǎo yí xià míng nián de yù suàn fāng àn.
    We need to deliberate on next year's budget plan.
  • 商讨，。
    Jīng guò duō cì shāng tǎo, tā men zhōng yú dá chéng le yí zhì.
    After many rounds of discussion, they finally reached an agreement.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

商shāngdiscuss
讨tǎodiscuss

商 (discuss) and 讨 (discuss) both concern deliberation, so the word means to discuss.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 商 →

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 討; 讨 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
肘
肘zhǒu討tǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 討 pairs 言 (speech) with a shortened form of 肘 for sound; an old reading took 言 plus 寸 (hand) as 'rectify'. The simplified 讨 is a shorthand, so its parts are not historical components.

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

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