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换句话说 (huàn jù huà shuō) — in other words; that is to say

Definition

verb
in other wordsthat is to say

Examples

  • ，换句话说，。
    Tā bú tài xǐ huan shè jiāo, huàn jù huà shuō, tā shì gè nèi xiàng de rén.
    He doesn't like socializing very much; in other words, he's an introvert.
  • ，换句话说，。
    Zhè ge fāng àn chéng běn tài gāo, huàn jù huà shuō, wǒ men fù dān bù qǐ.
    This plan costs too much; in other words, we can't afford it.
  • ，换句话说，。
    Nǐ xū yào zài yuè dǐ qián wán chéng bào gào, huàn jù huà shuō, shí jiān hěn jǐn.
    You need to finish the report by the end of the month; in other words, time is tight.

Origin

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 換; 换 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
奐
奐huàn換huàn
Same sound today

For the traditional form 換, 手 is the hand part and 奐 gives the sound; this note is about 換, not the simplified 换.

Open 换 →

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
丩丩jiūto entangle
Sound part声符shēngfú
口
口kǒu句jù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

句 pairs 丩, originally two entangled ropes and giving a sense of entangling, with 口 as the sound part.

Open 句 →

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 話; 话 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánword
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠯑
𠯑𠯑話huà
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 話, 言 relates to words and 𠯑 gives the sound; the simplified 话 is a shorthand, so its right side is not that sound part.

Open 话 →

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 說; 说 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
兌
兌duì說shuō
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 說 pairs 言 (meaning) with 兌 (sound); the simplified 说 is not the form described here.

Open 说 →
Appears in
Communication & SpeechIdioms & Set Phrases

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