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说服力 (shuō fú lì) — persuasiveness

Definition

说服力 is the abstract noun 'persuasiveness' — the quality of an argument, speech, or evidence that convinces people. Pairs with verbs like 有, 缺乏, or 提高 to describe how convincing something is.

noun
persuasiveness

Examples

  • 说服力。
    Tā de yǎn jiǎng hěn yǒu shuō fú lì.
    His speech is very persuasive.
  • 说服力，。
    Zhè ge shù jù de shuō fú lì bù zú, xū yào gèng duō zhèng jù.
    The persuasiveness of this data is insufficient; more evidence is needed.
  • 说服力，。
    Wèi le tí gāo tí àn de shuō fú lì, tā men zuò le chōng fèn zhǔn bèi.
    To increase the persuasiveness of the proposal, they made full preparations.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

说服persuade
说shuōspeak服fúconvince
补充Verb + complement
力lìpower

说 (speak) and 服 (convince) combine, and 力 (power) gives persuasiveness.

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 說; 说 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
兌
兌duì說shuō
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 說 pairs 言 (meaning) with 兌 (sound); the simplified 说 is not the form described here.

Open 说 →

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
凡凡fántray
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠬝
𠬝𠬝服fú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 服, the part 𠬝 was the original picture for 'to subdue'; the added left part 凡, a tray, later changed shape.

Open 服 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

力 is drawn as either an arm bending out from the side of the body or a wooden plough.

Open 力 →
Appears in
Abstract ConceptsCommunication & Speech

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