改判 (gǎi pàn) — (law) to amend a judgment, to overturn a sentence

Definition

A legal term meaning a court changes a previous judgment on appeal — overturning or amending an earlier ruling. Used in formal/judicial contexts, not everyday speech.

verb
(law) to amend a judgmentto overturn a sentence

Examples

  • 改判。
    Èr shěn fǎ yuàn gǎi pàn le yuán pàn.
    The appeals court overturned the original verdict.
  • 改判。
    Tā bèi gǎi pàn wèi wú qī tú xíng.
    His sentence was commuted to life imprisonment.
  • 改判。
    Zhè ge àn jiàn jīng guò shàng sù hòu gǎi pàn le.
    The case was amended after an appeal.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

改gǎichange
判pànjudgment

改 means to change and 判 means judgment, so it means to change a judgment or sentence.

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
攴攴pū
Sound part声符shēngfú
巳
巳sì改gǎi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

An early form of 改 paired 巳 as a sound part with 攴 as a meaning part; the sound part later changed.

Open 改 →

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
刀刀dāoknife
Sound part声符shēngfú
半
半bàn判pàn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

判 combines 刀, a knife, with 半, which provides the sound.

Open 判 →

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