担任 (dān rèn) — to serve as; to hold (a position, office, or ro… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

担任 focuses on formally holding a post or role (担任总经理). Unlike 担当, the emphasis is on the position itself, not on the responsibility or courage involved.

verb

to serve asto hold (a position, office, or role)

Examples

担任。
Tā dān rèn gōng sī de zǒng jīng lǐ.
He serves as the general manager of the company.
担任？
Shuí néng dān rèn zhè ge zhí wèi?
Who can hold this position?
担任。
Tā céng jīng dān rèn guò xiào zhǎng.
She once served as the school principal.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

担dāntake on

“担” gives taking on, “任” gives a duty or post, so the word means to take on a role.

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.

扌旦担

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

旦

旦dàn担dàn

Same sound today

In 担, the left part 扌 is the hand, showing that the action involves using the hand. The right part 旦 shows how it sounds.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

亻壬任

Meaning part形符xíngfú

亻Written in full as人rénperson

Sound part声符shēngfú

壬

壬rén任rèn

Same sound today

任 pairs 亻, a person, with 壬, which may picture a shoulder pole turned sideways.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 5 HSK 2.0 Level 5 Professions & Jobs

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