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追求 (zhuī qiú) — to pursue (a goal, dream, ideal); to woo, to court (a romantic partner)

Definition

追求 is to actively pursue a goal, dream, or romantic partner — emphasizes effort and persistence, more committed than 梦想 (the dream itself). Use it as a verb; 追求 + person means to court/woo.

verb
to pursue (a goal, dream, ideal)to wooto court (a romantic partner)

Examples

  • 追求。
    Tā yì zhí zài zhuī qiú zì jǐ de mèng xiǎng.
    He has been pursuing his dream.
  • 追求。
    Nà ge nán hái zhèng zài zhuī qiú wǒ mèi mei.
    That boy is wooing my sister.
  • 追求。
    Hěn duō gōng sī dōu zài zhuī qiú zhè ge xiàng mù.
    Many companies are pursuing this project.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

追zhuīpursue
求qiúseek

追 (pursue) and 求 (seek) describe chasing after something wanted, together meaning to pursue or court.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuòmovement
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠂤
𠂤𠂤追zhuī
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The 辶 part shows movement, while 𠂤 gives the sound, for the sense of moving after or pursuing.

Open 追 →

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

求 began as a drawing of a centipede.

Open 求 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Romance & MarriageWill & Intention5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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