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竞选 (jìng xuǎn) — to run for office; to campaign for election

Definition

竞选 specifically means 'to run for office / campaign for election' — limited to political elections. 竞争 is the general 'to compete' (jobs, markets, sports), and 选举 is 'to elect' (the voters' act).

verb
to run for officeto campaign for election

Examples

  • 竞选。
    Tā míng nián yào jìng xuǎn zǒng tǒng.
    He plans to run for president next year.
  • 竞选。
    Zhè cì jìng xuǎn chí xù le sān gè yuè.
    This election campaign lasted three months.
  • 竞选。
    Tā jìng xuǎn yì yuán shī bài le.
    She failed in her campaign to become a council member.

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
选xuǎnelection

竞 means to compete and 选 means election, giving the idea of competing in an election.

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 選; 选 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
止止zhǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
巽
巽xùn選xuǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 選 combines 止 with 巽, which gives the sound xùn; its sense of choosing is explained as rejecting or sending someone back. Simplified 选 is a shorthand.

Open 选 →
Appears in
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