Chinese word

传

Pronunciation

Pinyinchuán

Meaning

  • verbpass on

Example

请把消息传给他。qǐng bǎ xiāo xī chuán gěi tā

Please pass the message on to him.

Illustration for 传 (pass on)

More examples

那个消息很快就传开了。nà ge xiāo xī hěn kuài jiù chuán kāi le

That message spread quickly.

Core concept

Something leaves one holder and continues through people until it reaches a new holder or a wider group.

Common phrases

  • 传给chuán gěi

    pass on to

  • 传来chuán lái

    come through

  • 传开chuán kāi

    spread

Similar words

告诉gào sù: Informing someone of a fact or feeling through speech or writing.
递dì: Giving a physical item or document directly into someone's hands.
转告zhuǎn gào: Passing on something heard so that another person learns about it.
传达chuán dá: Communicating information or intentions clearly to the intended person.

Definition in Chinese

把信息、话语或物件从一人传给另一人的动作或过程，常用于传递消息或传播知识。bǎ xìn xī huà yǔ huò wù jiàn cóng yì rén chuán gěi lìng yì rén de dòng zuò huò guò chéng cháng yòng yú chuán dì xiāo xī huò chuán bō zhī shí

Word origin

传 (chuán, "pass on") developed from the concrete idea of conveying something onward, which naturally broadened to messages, knowledge, and things that circulate among people.

Usage tips

  • When both an item and its recipient appear, Chinese often marks the recipient with 给 (gěi, "to"), making the direction clear even when English relies on word order.

Other meanings

  • transmitverb
  • spreadverb

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word