讨价还价 (tǎo jià huán jià) — to bargain, to haggle over a price

Definition

Verb phrase meaning 'to bargain / haggle over a price' — describes the back-and-forth negotiation itself. 物美价廉 names the desired outcome (cheap and good quality), not the act of bargaining.

phrase
to bargainto haggle over a price

Examples

  • ，讨价还价。
    Mǎi yī fu de shí hou, mā ma zǒng xǐ huan gēn lǎo bǎn tǎo jià huán jià.
    When buying clothes, Mom always likes to bargain with the shopkeeper.
  • 讨价还价，。
    Tā huā le yí gè xiǎo shí tǎo jià huán jià, zuì hòu pián yi le wǔ shí kuài.
    He spent an hour haggling and finally got 50 yuan off.
  • 讨价还价，。
    Wǒ bú tài huì tǎo jià huán jià, měi cì dōu shì bié rén bāng wǒ jiǎng jià.
    I'm not very good at bargaining; every time someone else negotiates the price for me.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

讨价ask a price
讨tǎoseek价jiàprice
动宾Verb + object
还价counter a price
还háireturn价jiàprice
动宾Verb + object

讨价 means ask a price and 还价 means return a price; together they describe bargaining.

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 討; 讨 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
肘
肘zhǒu討tǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 討 pairs 言 (speech) with a shortened form of 肘 for sound; an old reading took 言 plus 寸 (hand) as 'rectify'. The simplified 讨 is a shorthand, so its parts are not historical components.

Open 讨 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
人人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
介
介jiè价jiè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

价 pairs 人 (person) with 介, which gives the sound.

Open 价 →

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 還; 还 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
睘
睘qióng還hái
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 還 pairs 辵 (walk) with 睘 as a sound part for 'go back; return'; the simplified 还 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 还 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
人人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
介
介jiè价jiè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

价 pairs 人 (person) with 介, which gives the sound.

Open 价 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Idioms & Set PhrasesShopping & Errands

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