退 (tuì) — to return (a purchased item, ticket, etc.); to withdraw from (a competition, course, activity); to decline (an invitation, offer); to reject
Definition
退 covers both 'returning' an item and 'stepping back' from a commitment. Use 拒绝 when you only want to refuse an offer; use 退回 when an item must be sent back physically.
verb
to return (a purchased item, ticket, etc.)to withdraw from (a competition, course, activity)to decline (an invitation, offer)to reject
Examples
- ，退。Wǒ mǎi de yī fu bù hé shì, suǒ yǐ qù diàn lǐ tuì le qián.The clothes I bought didn't fit, so I went to the store and got a refund.
- 退。Tā zhè ge xué qī tuì le yì mén kè.He withdrew from a course this semester.
- 退。Tā tuì diào le nà ge gōng zuò jī huì.He turned down that job offer.
Origin
Compound ideograph六书liùshū
会意huìyìTwo or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.
- 皀皀jífood vessel
- 夊夊suīdownward foot
退 originally showed 皀, a food vessel, with 夊, a downward foot, for leaving the table after eating. In modern 退, the vessel part 皀 changed into an unrelated shape.
Appears in
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