Chinese word

求

Pronunciation

Pinyinqiú

Meaning

  • verbask

Example

我求你帮我一次。wǒ qiú nǐ bāng wǒ yí cì

I ask you to help me just this once.

Illustration for 求 (ask)

More examples

他打电话求救。tā dǎ diàn huà qiú jiù

He called to ask for help.

Core concept

Reaching toward a goal or a helper expresses a wish to obtain something.

Common phrases

  • 向别人求助xiàng bié rén qiú zhù

    seek help from others

  • 求救qiú jiù

    ask for help

Similar words

请qǐng: Courteously ask someone for an action or favor.
帮忙bāng máng: Ask for help with something that needs to be done.
求助qiú zhù: Turn to others for help in a difficult situation.
请求qǐng qiú: Submit an official or formal request for an action or decision.

Definition in Chinese

表示寻求某物或寻求他人帮助的动作或意愿，也用来向他人提出请托或乞求的行为。biǎo shì xún qiú mǒu wù huò xún qiú tā rén bāng zhù de dòng zuò huò yì yuàn yě yòng lái xiàng tā rén tí chū qǐng tuō huò qǐ qiú de xíng wéi

Word origin

The ancient character 求 (qiú, "seek") first referred to a fur garment and was later used for the verb meaning "to seek", while 裘 (qiú, "fur garment") kept the garment meaning.

Usage tips

  • When the goal is another person's help, the person can follow the verb directly before the requested action, a common spoken pattern in Chinese.

Other meanings

  • seekverb
  • begverb

Related words

Word lists with this word