算总账 (suàn zǒng zhàng) — to settle accounts (literally or figuratively); to have a final reckoning; to get even

Definition

A chengyu-style verb meaning 'to settle all accounts at once — a final reckoning'. Used figuratively to mean getting even with someone for everything they have done, not for a single debt.

verb
to settle accounts (literally or figuratively)to have a final reckoningto get even

Examples

  • ，算总账。
    Tā qiàn le wǒ zhè me duō qián, zǎo wǎn yào gēn tā suàn zǒng zhàng.
    He owes me so much money — sooner or later I'll settle accounts with him.
  • ，算总账。
    Bié jí, děng shì qing jié shù hòu wǒ men zài suàn zǒng zhàng.
    Don't rush; after things are finished, we'll settle the score.
  • ，。
    Tā zuò guò de nà xiē huài shì, zǒng yǒu yì tiān yào suàn yí cì zǒng zhàng.
    One day there will be a final reckoning for all the bad things he has done.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

算suàncalculate
总账total accounts
总zǒngtotal账zhàngaccounts
偏正Modifier + head

算, meaning calculate, combines with 总账, total accounts, to denote settling accounts.

Characters in this word

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

The current form 算 has 竹 on top, 目 in the middle, and 廾 below; the 目 part may have originally drawn counting rods, often made of bamboo.

Open 算 →

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 總; 总 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìrope
Sound part声符shēngfú
悤
悤cōng總zǒng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 總 has 糸, a rope, and 悤 as a sound part; the rope part is for binding together. This account is for 總, not for 总.

Open 总 →

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 賬; 账 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèishell
Sound part声符shēngfú
長
長cháng賬
Same sound today

In the traditional form 賬, 貝 is a shell and 長 is used for the sound; the simplified 账 is a later shorthand, not the historical shape.

Open 账 →

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