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补偿 (bǔ cháng) — to compensate; to make up for (loss, damage, or deficiency)

Definition

补偿 focuses on offsetting a loss or deficiency (often money paid back). Compared with 弥补 (fixing a non-material gap like a mistake) and 赔偿 (paying for damage caused), 补偿 is broader — it can cover either, but stresses making the loss whole again.

verb
to compensateto make up for (loss, damage, or deficiency)

Examples

  • 补偿。
    Gōng sī huì bǔ cháng nǐ de suǒ yǒu sǔn shī.
    The company will compensate you for all your losses.
  • 补偿。
    Tā huā le hěn duō shí jiān bǔ cháng zì jǐ guò qù fàn de cuò.
    He spent a lot of time making up for the mistakes he made in the past.
  • 补偿。
    Zhè cì shì gù de shòu hài zhě dé dào le hé lǐ de bǔ cháng.
    The victims of this accident received reasonable compensation.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

补bǔmake up
偿chángrepay

Make up and repay combine to mean compensate.

Characters in this word

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 補; 补 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
衤Written in full as衣yīclothes
Sound part声符shēngfú
甫
甫fǔ補bǔ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 補 shows 衤 (clothes) beside 甫, which gives the sound; the simplified 补 is a later shorthand, so its shape is not the historical breakdown.

Open 补 →

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 償; 偿 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
賞
賞shǎng償cháng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 償 pairs 亻 (person) with 賞 as the sound part; the simplified 偿 is a later shorthand, not a historical component breakdown.

Open 偿 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 6Abstract Concepts5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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