查阅 (chá yuè) — to consult; to look up (files, documents, information); to examine

Definition

查阅 is a formal verb for looking through written records, files, or documents to find information. It is more official/written than casual look-up words like 看 kàn, and emphasizes systematic examination rather than quick reading.

verb
to consultto look up (files, documents, information)to examine
Easily confused

Examples

  • 查阅。
    Qǐng xiān chá yuè xiāng guān wén xiàn zài zuò jié lùn.
    Please consult the relevant literature before drawing a conclusion.
  • 查阅。
    Tā huā le yí xià wǔ chá yuè dàng àn shì de jiù wén jiàn.
    He spent the whole afternoon looking up old files in the archives.
  • 查阅。
    Zhè fèn bào gào xū yào chá yuè duō fèn zī liào cái néng wán chéng.
    This report requires examining multiple documents to complete.

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.

查cháexamine
阅yuèread/inspect

查阅 combines 查 (examine) and 阅 (read/inspect) to mean looking through records or information.

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
木木mùwood
Sound part声符shēngfú
且
且qiě查chá
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

查 pairs 木 (wood) with 且, which shows the sound. It originally meant a hawthorn tree or a wooden raft.

Open 查 →

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 閱; 阅 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
門門mén
Sound part声符shēngfú
兌
兌duì閱yuè
Same sound today

The traditional form 閱 pairs 門, a gate, with 兌, a part that gives the sound; the simplified 阅 is a shorthand.

Open 阅 →
Appears in
Reading & Writing

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