撤离 (chè lí) — to evacuate; to withdraw from (a place)

Definition

撤离 means to evacuate or pull people out of a dangerous area. Compared with 撤退 (military retreat) and 疏散 (spreading people out), 撤离 focuses on moving people away from a specific location for safety.

verb
to evacuateto withdraw from (a place)

Examples

  • 撤离。
    Suǒ yǒu rén yuán bì xū lì jí chè lí wēi xiǎn qū yù.
    All personnel must immediately evacuate the danger zone.
  • 撤离。
    Zhèng fǔ xià lìng yán hǎi jū mín chè lí dào ān quán dì dài.
    The government ordered coastal residents to evacuate to safe areas.
  • ，撤离。
    Yóu yú kuī sǔn yán zhòng, gōng sī jué dìng cóng gāi shì chǎng chè lí.
    Due to heavy losses, the company decided to withdraw from that market.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

撤chèwithdraw
离líleave

撤 and 离 both mean moving away, so together they express withdrawing from a place.

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
徹
徹chè撤chè
Same sound today

撤 pairs 扌 (hand) with 徹, which gives the sound. The shape shows removing something by hand.

Open 撤 →

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 離; 离 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuībird
Sound part声符shēngfú
离
离lí離lí
Same sound today

The traditional form 離 pairs 隹, a bird, with the sound part 离; the simplified 离 is a shorthand. This form first wrote a black-naped oriole, and the sound was borrowed for 'leave'.

Open 离 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Safety & Danger

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