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处世 (chǔ shì) — to conduct oneself in society; to deal with social relationships

Definition

处世 (chǔ shì) is a formal verb meaning 'to conduct oneself in society / deal with people' — it focuses on how one handles social relationships and life in the world, often paired with 之道 (处世之道 'the way of conducting oneself').

verb
to conduct oneself in societyto deal with social relationships

Examples

  • 。
    Tā chǔ shì fēi cháng jǐn shèn.
    He is very cautious in dealing with social matters.
  • 处世。
    chǔ shì Zhī dào shì yì mén zhòng yào de xué wèn.
    The way of conducting oneself in society is an important area of knowledge.
  • ，。
    Chù le jǐ shí nián de shì, tā kàn rén hěn zhǔn.
    Having dealt with society for decades, he is very accurate in judging people.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

处chùdeal with
世shìthe world

处 (deal with) and 世 (the world) mean how one conducts oneself in society.

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 處; 处 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
夂夂zhǐ
几几jǐtable
Sound part声符shēngfú
虍
虍hū處chǔ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 處 pairs 虍, giving the sound, with 夂 and 几, a table, as meaning parts. The simplified 处 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 处 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 世 →
Appears in
Society & Public Life

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