TongTong
Sign in

握手言和 (wò shǒu yán hé) — to shake hands and make peace, to reconcile amicably

Definition

A chengyu-style set phrase meaning to formally reconcile by shaking hands — used for rivals, disputants, or opposing sides ending a conflict, more ceremonial than everyday 'make peace'.

verb
to shake hands and make peaceto reconcile amicably

Examples

  • ，握手言和。
    Jīng guò duō cì tán pàn, shuāng fāng zuì zhōng wò shǒu yán hé.
    After many rounds of negotiation, the two sides finally shook hands and made peace.
  • 握手言和，。
    Nà chǎng qiú sài zuì hòu yǐ wò shǒu yán hé jié shù, guān zhòng zhǎng shēng bú duàn.
    That match ended with a handshake of reconciliation, and the audience kept applauding.
  • ，握手言和。
    Tā men céng shì jìng zhēng duì shǒu, xiàn zài què wò shǒu yán hé chéng le méng yǒu.
    They used to be rivals, but now they've reconciled and become allies.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

握手shake hands
握wòhold手shǒuhand
动宾Verb + object
言和make peace
言yánspeak和hépeace
动宾Verb + object

握手 means to shake hands and 言和 means to speak peace, together they mean to reconcile amicably.

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shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
屋
屋wū握wò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

握 has 扌, a hand shape, on the left, and 屋 on the right, which gives its sound.

Open 握 →

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 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The early form of 言 shows an opening and a mark indicating a location; the location is not described as the source of speech.

Open 言 →

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
禾
禾hé和hé
Same sound today

和 pairs 禾, which gives the sound, with 口 (mouth), the meaning part; the reference connects this shape to harmony.

Open 和 →
Appears in
Conflict & AgreementIdioms & Set Phrases

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.