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嘉奖 (jiā jiǎng) — (verb) to commend, to cite (for meritorious service); (noun) commendation, citation

Definition

Formal written verb/noun meaning to officially praise and recognize someone for a real achievement — stronger and more ceremonial than 表扬, which is for general good behavior or work.

verb
to commendto cite (for meritorious service)
noun
commendationcitation

Examples

  • 嘉奖。
    Gōng sī jué dìng jiā jiǎng jǐ wèi yōu xiù yuán gōng.
    The company decided to commend several outstanding employees.
  • 嘉奖。
    Tā yīn zài jiù yuán zhōng de yǒng gǎn biǎo xiàn ér shòu dào jiā jiǎng.
    He received a citation for his brave performance in the rescue.
  • 嘉奖。
    Zhè cì jiā jiǎng shì duì wǒ men tuán duì nǔ lì de rèn kě.
    This commendation is recognition of our team's hard work.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

嘉jiācommend
奖jiǎngreward

嘉 (commend) and 奖 (reward) combine to mean praising and rewarding someone.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
壴壴zhù
Sound part声符shēngfú
加
加jiā嘉jiā
Same sound today

嘉 is built from 壴, the part tied to its sense, and 加, the part tied to its sound.

Open 嘉 →

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 獎; 奖 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
犬犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
將
將jiāng獎jiǎng
Same sound today

The traditional form 獎 pairs 將 as a sound part with 犬, a dog; the simplified 奖 is a later shorthand. The evidence says the dog part's meaning is unclear, perhaps referring to guiding a dog by voice.

Open 奖 →
Appears in
Success & Failure

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