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接手 (jiē shǒu) — to take over (duties, tasks, projects, etc.)

Definition

接手 is a separable verb meaning 'to take over' a task, project, or role from someone else. Unlike 接收 (more for signals, people, or property) or 接班 (specifically succeeding in a position or shift), 接手 focuses on accepting and continuing someone's work.

verb
to take over (duties, tasks, projects, etc.)

Examples

  • 接手。
    Tā jiē shǒu le zhè xiàng rèn wu.
    He took over this task.
  • ，接手。
    Jīng lǐ zǒu hòu, tā jiē shǒu le gōng zuò.
    After the manager left, she took over the work.
  • ，。
    Tā yǐ jīng jiē guò shǒu le, nǐ bú yòng zài guǎn le.
    He has already taken over, you don't need to worry anymore.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

接jiētake over
手shǒuhand

The sense of 接, take over, combines with 手, hand, to picture taking duties from another's hands.

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
扌Written in full as手shǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
妾
妾qiè接jiē
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 扌 shows a hand, matching the sense of receiving something in the hand, while 妾 gives the character its sound.

Open 接 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Workplace & Office5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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