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调和 (tiáo hé) — (adjective) harmonious, well-balanced; (verb) to mediate, to reconcile; (verb) to mix, to blend, to season

Definition

调和 covers three senses: 'harmonious' (colors, flavors), 'to blend/season' (ingredients), and 'to mediate' (a dispute). It blends more than 混合 (just mixing), and mediates more gently than 安抚 (pacifying) or 妥协 (compromise).

adjective
harmoniouswell-balanced
verb
to mediateto reconcileto mixto blendto season

Examples

  • 调和。
    Zhè fú huà de sè cǎi shí fēn tiáo hé.
    The colors of this painting are very harmonious.
  • 调和。
    Tā nǔ lì tiáo hé shuāng fāng de máo dùn.
    He worked hard to mediate the conflict between both sides.
  • 调和。
    Zuò tāng shí jì de tiáo hé gè zhǒng tiáo liào.
    When making soup, remember to blend the various seasonings.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

调tiáotune
和héharmony

调 carries the sense of tuning or adjusting, and 和 carries harmony, so the word means a balanced, harmonious blend.

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 調; 调 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
周
周zhōu調tiáo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 調 pairs 言 (speech) with 周, which shows how it was pronounced. The simplified 调 is a later shorthand.

Open 调 →

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
禾
禾hé和hé
Same sound today

和 pairs 禾, which gives the sound, with 口 (mouth), the meaning part; the reference connects this shape to harmony.

Open 和 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Conflict & AgreementCooking

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