组 zǔ — to form; compose; make up; group; to organize; cord
老师把我们分成了四个小组。Lǎo shī bǎ wǒ men fēn chéng le sì ge xiǎo zǔ.The teacher divided us into four small groups.
Common words: 小组 (xiǎo zǔ)、组成 (zǔ chéng)、组长 (zǔ zhǎng)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "compose"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "compose", including 组 (zǔ), 笔 (bǐ), 撰 (zhuàn), 撰 (zhuàn). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "compose" covers 4 different Chinese characters — 组 (zǔ), 笔 (bǐ), 撰 (zhuàn), 撰 (zhuàn) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 4 characters do not share a sound — their readings span zǔ, bǐ, zhuàn — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 组 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 组 zǔto form; compose; make up; group; to organize; cordUseful words: 小组, 组成
- 笔 bǐpen; pencil; writing brush; to write or compose; the strokes of Chinese charactersUseful words: 笔记本, 笔记
- 撰 zhuàncompose; compile; compose; compile; discourse in praiseUseful words: 撰写, 撰文
- 撰 zhuàncompose; compile; compose; compile; discourse in praiseUseful words: 撰写, 撰文
Common words for these 4 "compose" characters
Anchor each of these 4 characters in a word you can picture — start with 组 (zǔ) — so "compose" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
小组xiǎo zǔgroup组成zǔ chéngto form; to make up; to constitute组长zǔ zhǎnggroup leader笔记本bǐ jì běnnotebook (stationery) (; (computing) laptop; notebook笔记bǐ jìto take down (in writing); notes; a type of literature consisting mainly of short sketches铅笔qiān bǐ(lead) pencil撰写zhuàn xiěto write; to compose撰文zhuàn wénto write an article撰述zhuàn shùto compose (a piece of writing); to write; (written) work; writer撰写zhuàn xiěto write; to compose
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 4 ways to say "compose".
笔 bǐ — pen; pencil; writing brush; to write or compose; the strokes of Chinese characters
请用钢笔写下你的名字。Qǐng yòng gāng bǐ xiě xià nǐ de míng zi.Please write your name with a pen.
Common words: 笔记本 (bǐ jì běn)、笔记 (bǐ jì)、铅笔 (qiān bǐ)
撰 zhuàn — compose; compile; compose; compile; discourse in praise
这位作家撰写了好几本有名的小说。Zhè wèi zuò jiā zhuàn xiě le hǎo jǐ běn yǒu míng de xiǎo shuō.This writer has written several famous novels.
Common words: 撰写 (zhuàn xiě)、撰文 (zhuàn wén)、撰述 (zhuàn shù)
撰 zhuàn — compose; compile; compose; compile; discourse in praise
这位作家撰写了好几本有名的小说。Zhè wèi zuò jiā zhuàn xiě le hǎo jǐ běn yǒu míng de xiǎo shuō.This writer has written several famous novels.
Common words: 撰写 (zhuàn xiě)、撰文 (zhuàn wén)、撰述 (zhuàn shù)
All 4 characters
Open 组、笔、撰 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.