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相投 (xiāng tóu) — to get along well; to be compatible; to be congenial

Definition

相投 (xiāng tóu) describes two people being compatible or drawn to each other in temperament, interests, or values — a more literary, written register than everyday phrases like 性格合得来 or 合得来.

verb
to get along wellto be compatibleto be congenial

Examples

  • 相投，。
    Tā men xìng gé xiāng tóu, hěn kuài jiù chéng le hǎo péng you.
    Their personalities are compatible, and they quickly became good friends.
  • 相投。
    Xìng qù xiāng tóu de rén zài yì qǐ zǒng yǒu hěn duō huà tí.
    People with similar interests always have a lot to talk about.
  • 相投，。
    Liǎng rén yīn gòng tóng de lǐ xiǎng ér xiāng tóu, zuì zhōng jué dìng yì qǐ chuàng yè.
    The two were attracted to each other by their common ideals and finally decided to start a business together.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

相xiāngeach other
投tóumatch

相 each other and 投 matching combine to mean getting along congenially.

Characters in this word

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

In 相, 目 is an eye and 木 is a tree, showing an eye looking at a tree; this originally meant “to observe.”

Open 相 →

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
殳
殳shū投tóu
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left part 扌 shows a hand, and the right part 殳 gives the sound of the character.

Open 投 →
Appears in
Friends & Social

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