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尽快 (jǐn kuài) — as soon as possible; as quickly as possible

Definition

尽快 focuses on speed — "as quickly/soon as possible." Compare 尽量 ("as much as possible," about extent/effort) and 尽早 ("as early as possible," about timing).

adverb
as soon as possibleas quickly as possible

Examples

  • 尽快。
    Qǐng jǐn kuài huí fù wǒ.
    Please reply to me as soon as possible.
  • 尽快。
    Yī shēng jiàn yì jǐn kuài zuò shǒu shù.
    The doctor advised to have the surgery as soon as possible.
  • 尽快。
    Zhè ge wèn tí xū yào jǐn kuài jiě jué.
    This problem needs to be resolved as soon as possible.

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.

尽jìnto the utmost
快kuàiquick

尽 “to the utmost” sets the limit for 快 “quick”, giving “as quick as possible”.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 盡; 尽 is its simplified writing.

  • 聿聿yùhand holding a brush
  • 灬灬huǒbristles
  • 皿皿mǐndish

The traditional form 盡 shows 聿 (hand holding a brush) and 灬 (bristles) over 皿 (dish), cleaning a dish until it is empty. The simplified 尽 is a shorthand, not those historical parts.

Open 尽 →

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
忄Written in full as心xīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
夬
夬guài快kuài
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

快 pairs the left part 忄 (full form 心, the heart) with the right part 夬, which gives the sound.

Open 快 →
Appears in
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