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选拔赛 (xuǎn bá sài) — selective trials; qualifying competition (typically in sports)

Definition

noun
selective trialsqualifying competition (typically in sports)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 选拔赛。
    Zhè cì xuǎn bá sài de yōu shèng zhě jiāng dài biǎo guó jiā cān jiā ào yùn huì.
    The winners of this selective trial will represent the country at the Olympics.
  • 选拔赛。
    Tā zài xuǎn bá sài zhōng pǎo chū le gè rén zuì hǎo chéng jì.
    He ran a personal best in the qualifying competition.
  • 选拔赛。
    Jiào liàn tōng guò xuǎn bá sài tiāo xuǎn le shí míng duì yuán cān jiā jué sài.
    Through the selective trials, the coach picked ten players for the final.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

选拔select
选xuǎnchoose拔bápick out
联合Coordinate
赛sàicompetition

选 and 拔 both mean pick out, together specifying 赛, a competition, as a qualifying contest.

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 →

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
犮
犮bá拔bá
Same sound today

In 拔, the left side 扌 is a hand and the right side 犮 gives the sound; the shape pictures a hand pulling.

Open 拔 →

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 賽; 赛 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèishell
Sound part声符shēngfú
塞
塞sāi賽sài
Same sound today

The traditional form 賽 uses 貝 (shell) for meaning and 塞 for sound. The simplified 赛 is a later shorthand.

Open 赛 →
Appears in
Sports & Athletics

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