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教养 (jiào yǎng) — (verb) to educate, to bring up, to nurture; (noun) upbringing, breeding, cultural refinement

Definition

教养 (jiàoyǎng) is more about the cultural refinement or good manners a person shows than the act of teaching itself — contrast with 教育 ('education' as a system) and 培养 (fostering skills/talent).

verb
to educateto bring upto nurture
noun
upbringingbreedingcultural refinement

Examples

  • 教养。
    Fù mǔ yīng gāi cóng xiǎo zhù zhòng jiào yǎng hái zi pǐn dé.
    Parents should focus on cultivating their children's character from an early age.
  • 教养，。
    Tā shuō huà hěn yǒu jiào yǎng, cóng bú duì rén wú lǐ.
    She speaks with great refinement and never treats anyone rudely.
  • 教养。
    Yí gè rén de jiào yǎng wǎng wǎng tǐ xiàn zài xì jié shàng.
    A person's upbringing is often reflected in small details.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

教jiàoeducate
养yǎngnurture

教 and 养 both mean educating and nurturing, so the word covers upbringing or to bring up.

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
子子zǐchild
攵Written in full as攴pūteaching cane; stick that represents authority
Sound part声符shēngfú
爻
爻yáo教jiào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

教 uses 爻 for its sound and puts 子 (child) with 攵 (攴), a teaching cane, to show teaching a child.

Open 教 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 養; 养 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 養 uses 羊 as a sound part and 食 as a meaning part.

Open 养 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6School & EducationPersonality & Traits

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