Kilo Lingo

(guǎn lǐ) - to manage, to administer, to run; management in Mandarin

guǎn

Traditional: 管理

#2204 of 5,000 Core 5000

Translation

to manage, to administer, to run; management

Word origin

A compound of 管 (guǎn, to be in charge of) and 理 (lǐ, to put in order), two verbs of oversight joined together.

Origin
compound
Root
管 (guǎn, to be in charge of) + 理 (lǐ, to put in order)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 管

Stroke order for 理

Examples

She runs a very large company.

The management here is very strict.

He is in charge of managing these files.

The school has tightened up how it manages its students.

Time management is a skill.

管理 (guǎn lǐ) is the formal word for running something: a company, a department, a database, a block of flats. It works as a verb with a direct object and as a noun without changing shape, so 管理公司 (guǎn lǐ gōng sī) is to manage a company and 公司的管理 (gōng sī de guǎn lǐ) is the company's management.

Both syllables are third tone, which triggers tone sandhi: the first shifts to second, so it comes out as guán lǐ. Written pinyin keeps the underlying third tones, which is why the page shows guǎn lǐ. Say it the sandhi way.

The single character 管 (guǎn) on its own is much more informal and often means to bother with or to interfere: 别管我 (bié guǎn wǒ), leave me alone; 我管不了 (wǒ guǎn bù liǎo), I cannot do anything about it. Swapping the compound for the bare character in a work context will make you sound blunt.

Where this fits

Used in

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Mandarin · Free printables

管理: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "管理" (to manage, to administer, to run; management): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

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This word is part of lesson 45.