争
Tap the pinyin to hear it
to strive for; to vie for; to argue or debate; deficient or lacking (dialect); how or what (literary)
Formation & memory
Break the character into parts you already know.
How 争 is formed
Ideographic compound (会意字)
Simplified form of 爭, two hands 爪 and 彐 fighting over 亅
Components ⺈ 彐 亅
How to remember it
contend · Heisig RSH #951
bound up + rake
Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.
Words with 争
The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 克里木战争 | the Crimean War (1853-1856) | |
| 不争气 | to be disappointing; to fail to live up to expectations | |
| 中法战争 | Sino-French War (1883-1885) (concerning French seizure of Vietnam) | |
| 争面子 | to do (sb) proud; to be a credit to (one's school etc); to make oneself look good; to buil… | |
| 人民战争 | people's war, military strategy advocated by Mao whereby a large number of ordinary citize… | |
| 国内战争 | civil war; internal struggle | |
| 力争上游 | to strive for mastery (idiom); aiming for the best result; to have high ambitions | |
| 美国独立战争 | American War of Independence (1775-1783) | |
| 普法战争 | Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871) | |
| 太平洋战争 | Pacific War between Japan and the US, 1941-1945 | |
| 争球线 | scrimmage line (American football) | |
| 不争 | widely known; incontestable; undeniable; to not strive for; to not contend for | |
| 争气 | to work hard for sth; to resolve on improvement; determined not to fall short | |
| 分争 | to dispute; to struggle for mastery | |
| 争上游 | to strive to be among the best; zheng shangyou (card game) | |
| 解放战争 | War of Liberation (1945-49), after which the Communists 共產黨武裝|共产党武装 under Mao Zedong 毛澤東|毛… | |
| 正义斗争 | righteous struggle | |
| 力争 | to work hard for; to do all one can; to contend strongly | |
| 护国战争 | National Protection War or Campaign to Defend the Republic (1915), a rebellion against the… | |
| 争论点 | contention |
Sound family
These characters use 争 as their sound component — compare how they read.
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 争 sound part | to dispute, to fight, to contend, to strive | |
| 静 | still, quiet, motionless, gentle | |
| 净 | clean, pure; to cleanse | |
| 睁 | to open one's eyes; to stare | |
| 筝 | guzheng, zither, string instrument | |
| 铮 | clanging sound; a small gong | |
| 峥 | high, lofty, noble; perilous, steep | |
| 狰 | fierce-looking, ferocious |