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竞赛 (jìng sài) — to compete; to race (in a formal contest)

Definition

竞赛 (jìngsài) emphasizes a formal, organized contest or competition — stronger than the everyday 比赛. Compare 竞争, which stresses rivalry for resources or advantage rather than a structured event.

verb
to competeto race (in a formal contest)

Examples

  • 竞赛，。
    Tā men zhèng zài jìng sài, kàn shuí pǎo de kuài.
    They are racing to see who runs faster.
  • 竞赛，。
    Liǎng gè duì wu jìng sài dé hěn jī liè, guān zhòng dōu hěn xīng fèn.
    The two teams compete fiercely, and the audience is very excited.
  • 竞赛。
    Tā hé tóng xué men jìng sài shù xué tí mù.
    She competes with classmates on math problems.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

竞jìngcompete
赛sàicontest

竞 and 赛 both point to contending, so together they mean to compete in a contest.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 賽; 赛 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèishell
Sound part声符shēngfú
塞
塞sāi賽sài
Same sound today

The traditional form 賽 uses 貝 (shell) for meaning and 塞 for sound. The simplified 赛 is a later shorthand.

Open 赛 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 6Sports & Athletics

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