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竞价 (jìng jià) — price competition; competitive bidding

Definition

A formal/commercial term for competitive bidding — buyers drive the price up by outbidding each other, typically at auctions or in procurement contracts.

noun
price competitioncompetitive bidding

Examples

  • 竞价。
    Zhè chǎng pāi mài huì de jìng jià fēi cháng jī liè.
    The bidding at this auction was very intense.
  • 竞价。
    Liǎng jiā gōng sī wèi le zhè ge xiàng mù zhǎn kāi le jìng jià.
    The two companies engaged in price competition for this project.
  • 竞价。
    Zài xiàn jìng jià píng tái ràng mǎi jiā néng gèng zhí jiē dì bǐ jiào jià gé.
    Online bidding platforms allow buyers to compare prices more directly.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

竞jìngcompete
价jiàprice

竞 “compete” and 价 “price” together mean competing over price.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 競; 竞 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 競 shows 誩 (argument) above two 儿 (men), as two individuals debating vigorously; the simplified 竞 is a later abbreviation.

Open 竞 →

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
人人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
介
介jiè价jiè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

价 pairs 人 (person) with 介, which gives the sound.

Open 价 →
Appears in
Business & CommerceMarketing & Sales

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