善用 (shàn yòng) — to make good use of, to use wisely or skillfully

Definition

善用 means to put something to skilled or purposeful use — more deliberate than plain 用, suggesting strategy and effectiveness.

verb
to make good use ofto use wisely or skillfully

Examples

  • 善用，。
    Wǒ men yào shàn yòng shí jiān, bú yào làng fèi.
    We should make good use of time and not waste it.
  • 善用，。
    Tā shàn yòng zì jǐ de cháng chù, zài gōng zuò zhōng biǎo xiàn chū sè.
    He made good use of his strengths and performed excellently at work.
  • 善用。
    Gōng sī xū yào shàn yòng xiàn dài jì shù lái tí gāo xiào lǜ.
    The company needs to make good use of modern technology to improve efficiency.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

善shànskillfully
用yònguse

善 means skillfully or well, and 用 means use, so the word describes using something wisely or effectively.

Characters in this word

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

An earlier form of 善 joined 羊, a sheep linked with goodness or beauty, and 誩, described as a wrangle; the reference says this meaning link is hard to understand.

Open 善 →

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 →

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