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选取 (xuǎn qǔ) — to select, to choose (from a set of options)

Definition

Formal verb meaning 'to select from a set of options,' typically used in written or official contexts (e.g., proposals, candidates, data). More formal than the everyday 选.

verb
to selectto choose (from a set of options)

Examples

  • 。
    Qǐng cóng zhè xiē fāng àn zhōng xuǎn qǔ yí gè.
    Please select one from these plans.
  • 选取。
    Wǒ men xuǎn qǔ le zuì hé shì de hòu xuǎn rén.
    We selected the most suitable candidate.
  • 选取。
    Tā xuǎn qǔ le jǐ shǒu jīng diǎn gē qǔ lái biǎo yǎn.
    He selected a few classic songs to perform.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

选xuǎnselect
取qǔtake

选 and 取 both mean choosing or taking, so together they express selecting from options.

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 選; 选 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
止止zhǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
巽
巽xùn選xuǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 選 combines 止 with 巽, which gives the sound xùn; its sense of choosing is explained as rejecting or sending someone back. Simplified 选 is a shorthand.

Open 选 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

取 pairs 又 (hand) with 耳 (ear), showing a hand taking an ear, as in taking the ear of fallen prey.

Open 取 →
Appears in
Thinking & Cognition

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