捐献 (juān xiàn) — to donate, to contribute

Definition

捐献 emphasizes the act of giving to a public cause (money, goods, time). 比捐赠 more literary/formal; 捐款 is specifically about donating money.

verb

to donateto contribute

捐献。
Tā juān xiàn le yì bǐ qián gěi xī wàng gōng chéng.
He donated a sum of money to the Hope Project.
捐献。
Hěn duō shì mín zhǔ dòng juān xiàn le yī wù hé shí pǐn.
Many citizens voluntarily donated clothes and food.
捐献。
Zhè wèi qǐ yè jiā měi nián dōu juān xiàn dà liàng tú shū gěi xué xiào.
This entrepreneur donates a large number of books to schools every year.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

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

捐 and 献 both mean giving or offering, so together they emphasize contributing something valuable.

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.

扌肙捐

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

肙

肙yuān捐juān

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

The left side 扌, from 手, shows a hand doing something. The right side 肙 gives the sound yuān.

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 獻; 献 is its simplified writing.

鬳犬獻

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

鬳

鬳yàn獻xiàn

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

The traditional form 獻 combines 鬳, which gives the sound, with 犬, a dog. The simplified 献 is a later shorthand.

Appears in