TongTong
Sign in

成为 (chéng wéi) — to become, to turn into

Definition

成为 marks a change in status or identity ('became a teacher', 'became a manager'). Use 变成 for physical/visible changes, and 变 + adjective for shifting states.

verb
to becometo turn into

Examples

  • 成为。
    Tā xiǎng chéng wéi yì míng lǎo shī.
    He wants to become a teacher.
  • ，成为。
    Jīng guò nǔ lì, tā chéng wéi le gōng sī de jīng lǐ.
    After hard work, she became the manager of the company.
  • 成为。
    Zhè ge dì qū yǐ jīng chéng wéi le zhòng yào de jīng jì zhōng xīn.
    This region has become an important economic center.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

成chéngbecome
为wèibecome

Both parts carry the idea of turning into something, so together they mean to become a certain identity or state.

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
戊戊wù
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng成chéng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

成 puts 戊, a weapon, beside 丁, which gives the sound. The weapon part relates to protection, as in the old sense of city walls.

Open 成 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 為; 为 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 為 showed a hand holding an elephant; the simplified 为 is a later shorthand.

Open 为 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 4500 Most Frequent Chinese WordsHSK 2.0 Level 41000 Most Frequent Chinese WordsChange & Process2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 4 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.