定位 (dìng wèi) — (verb) to position; to orient; to categorize or… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

定位 covers both senses: as a verb, to position or label something (brand, market, person); as a noun, the resulting position or niche. 定向 focuses on directing toward a goal; 分类 is purely about sorting into categories.

verb

to positionto orientto categorize or characterize (as)

noun

positionpositioningniche

Examples

定位。
Zhè jiā gōng sī xū yào chóng xīn dìng wèi zì jǐ de pǐn pái.
This company needs to reposition its brand.
定位。
Chǎn pǐn de shì chǎng dìng wèi jué dìng le tā de xiāo shòu cè lüè.
The market positioning of the product determines its sales strategy.
定位。
Wǒ men bù néng jiǎn dān dìng wèi tā wèi shī bài zhě.
We cannot simply label him as a loser.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

位wèiposition

定 means fix, 位 means position; together they express fixing a position.

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

宀宀mián

Sound part声符shēngfú

正

正zhèng定dìng

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

定 is built from 宀 and 正, with 正 supplying the sound.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

立

立lì位wèi

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

位 combines 人 (man), related to people, with 立, which gives the sound. It was often simply written as 立.

Appears in

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