TongTong
Sign in

退让 (tuì ràng) — to move aside, to get out of the way; to back down, to concede

Definition

退让 means to step back or yield — physically moving aside, or conceding in a dispute. It emphasizes a deliberate, principled yielding, weaker than 让步 (giving in under pressure) and less fearful than 退缩 (shrinking back in fear).

verb
to move asideto get out of the wayto back downto concede

Examples

  • ，退让。
    Tā kàn jiàn lǎo rén zǒu guò lái, gǎn jǐn tuì ràng dào yì biān.
    He saw the old man coming and quickly moved aside.
  • ，退让。
    Zài tán pàn zhōng, shuāng fāng dōu bú yuàn yì tuì ràng.
    In the negotiation, neither side was willing to back down.
  • ，退让。
    Tā jiān chí yuán zé, jué bú tuì ràng.
    He stuck to his principles and would not back down.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

退tuìmove back
让ràngyield

退 gives moving back and 让 gives yielding, together meaning to concede or get out of the way.

Characters in this word

Two 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.

Open 退 →

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 讓; 让 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yán
Sound part声符shēngfú
襄
襄xiāng讓ràng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 讓 combines 言, showing speech, with 襄, giving the sound; the evidence links it to criticizing or reproaching. The simplified 让 is a later shorthand.

Open 让 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Conflict & Agreement

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.