Definition
讲 (jiǎng) means 'to tell, to speak, to explain' — it is used for telling stories or explaining something in a more structured way than the everyday 说 (shuō) and unlike the two-way discussion implied by 谈 (tán). It also has a separate sense of 'to be particular about' (e.g., 讲礼貌 – to be polite), which overlaps with 讲究 (jiǎng jiu) but 讲究 is more dedicated and can also be an adjective meaning 'exquisite'.
verb
to speakto tellto explainto be particular aboutto emphasize
Easily confused
- 进jìnlook-aliketo enter, to go in
- 将jiāngsound-alike(adverb) will, be going to
- 奖jiǎngsound-alike(noun) prize, award
- 酱jiàngsound-alike(noun) thick fermented paste (e.g., soybean paste, broad bean paste)
- 降jiàngsound-aliketo fall, to drop, to descend (of temperature, prices, altitude, etc.)
- 姜jiāngsound-alikeginger
- 江jiāngsound-alikeriver
- 僵jiāngsound-alikestiff, rigid (especially of body parts from cold, staying still, or after death)
- 桨jiǎngsound-alikeoar; paddle
Examples
- 讲。Tā gěi wǒmen jiǎng le yí gè gùshì.He told us a story.
- 讲。Qǐng nǐ zài jiǎng yí biàn.Please explain it once more.
- 讲。Tā hěn jiǎng lǐmào.He is very particular about manners.
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