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解体 (jiě tǐ) — (of organizations, systems) to disintegrate, to break up; (of structures) to collapse, to crumble

Definition

解体 means an organization or system falls apart from within — a formal, written term closer to 瓦解 than the more general 解散. 解散 focuses on a deliberate act of disbanding; 解体 emphasizes the entity ceasing to exist as a whole.

verb
(of organizations, systems) to disintegrateto break up(of structures) to collapseto crumble

Examples

  • ，解体。
    Zhè jiā gōng sī jīng yíng bú shàn, zuì zhōng jiě tǐ le.
    This company was poorly managed and eventually broke up.
  • ，解体。
    Dì zhèn hòu, xǔ duō lǎo jiù de qiáo liáng chè dǐ jiě tǐ.
    After the earthquake, many old bridges completely collapsed.
  • 解体。
    Nà ge lián méng yīn wèi nèi bù máo dùn ér zhú jiàn jiě tǐ.
    That alliance gradually disintegrated due to internal conflicts.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

解jiětake apart
体tǐbody

解 means to take apart, and 体 refers to a body or structure, giving the sense of breaking up.

Characters in this word

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

解 shows 刀 (knife) separating 角 (horn) from 牛 (cow), giving the picture of cutting up an ox.

Open 解 →

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 體; 体 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
骨骨gǔbone
Sound part声符shēngfú
豊
豊lǐ體tǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 體 pairs 骨 (bone) with 豊 as a sound part; this note is about 體, not about the parts of 体.

Open 体 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Change & Process

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