政策 (zhèng cè) — policy

Definition

政策 is a concrete plan or rule issued by a government or organization ("policy"). Don't confuse it with 政治 (politics, the field) or 方针 (broader guiding principles, more abstract).

noun
policy
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 。
    Gōng sī de xīn zhèng cè shòu dào dà jiā huān yíng.
    The company's new policy is welcomed by everyone.
  • 政策。
    Guó jiā jīng jì zhèng cè de biàn huà huì yǐng xiǎng měi gè rén de shēng huó.
    Changes in national economic policy can affect everyone's life.
  • 政策。
    Wǒ men yīng gāi liǎo jiě guó jiā de wài jiāo zhèng cè.
    We should understand the country's foreign policy.

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.

政zhènggovernment/politics
策cèplan/strategy

政 and 策 carry related meanings of governance and plan, together naming a policy.

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pūaction
Sound part声符shēngfú
正
正zhèng政zhèng
Same sound today

政 combines 正, which gives the sound, with 攴, an action-related part.

Open 政 →

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
竹竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
朿
朿cì策cè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

策 pairs 竹 (bamboo) with 朿 as a sound part.

Open 策 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 5Government & Politics5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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