Making "-ize" and "-ify" verbs with "hua"

Chinese-grammar-wiki-hua.jpg

The suffix -化 (-huà) can be added to the end of many Chinese words to make them into verbs, the equivalent of "-ize" or "-ify" in English.

Structure

You can take some Chinese nouns and adjectives and add a -化 to the end of them to "-ize" or "-ify" them. Basically, -化 takes the noun or adjective and makes it into a verb. One example of how we do that in English is to take the adjective "modern" and add "-ize" to turn it into the verb "modernize." Most of the time, the Chinese words that -化 is added to are two-character words.

Noun / Adj. + 化

Examples

The following is a short list of -化 words and sentences. Note that while the suffix -化 most often corresponds to "-ize" or "-ify" in English, these are not the only options in English. (Ah, you gotta love the endless variety of the English language!)

With a Noun

  • 中国、美国、个性、数字、城市、两极、边缘Zhōngguó-huà, Měiguó-huà, gèxìng-huà, shùzì-huà, chéngshì-huà, liǎngjí-huà, biānyuán-huàsinicize/Chinese-ify, Americanize, personalize, digitize, urbanize, polarize, marginalize
  • 我们 将 净 整个 行业 。Wǒmen jìng-huà zhěnggè hángyè.We will purify the entire industry.
  • KFC 的 中国 本土 经营 做 得 非常 成功。KFC de Zhōngguó běntǔ-huà jīngyíng zuò de fēicháng chénggōng.KFC's Chinese localization has been implemented very successfully.
  • 邓小平 提出了 四 个 现代:工业现代、农业现代、国防现代、科学技术现代Dèng Xiǎopíng tíchū le Sì Gè Xiàndài-huà: Gōngyè xiàndài-huà, nóngyè xiàndàihuà, guófáng xiàndài-huà, kēxué jìshù xiàndài-huà.Deng Xiaoping set forth the Four Modernizations: industrial modernization, agricultural modernization, national defense modernization, and scientific technology modernization.
  • 现在 我们 公司 的工作 流程 和 人事 管理 已经 初步 制度 了。Xiànzài wǒmen gōngsī de gōngzuò liúchéng hé rénshì guǎnlǐ yǐjīng chūbù zhìdùhuà le.These days our company's workflows and HR management have already started to be systematized.

With an Adjective

  • 、绿、软、现代、自然、多元měihuà, lǜhuà, ruǎnhuà, xiàndài-huà, zìrán-huà, duōyuán-huàbeautify, "greenify", soften, modernize, naturalize. diversify
  • 你 不要 把 真相 浪漫Nǐ bùyào bǎ zhēnxiàng làngmàn-huà!Don't romanticize the truth!
  • 你 应该 让 黄油 软,然后 跟 面包 一起 吃。Nǐ yīnggāi ràng huángyóu ruǎnhuà, ránhòu gēn miànbāo yīqǐ chī.You should allow the butter to soften, then eat it with bread.
  • 我们 保护 环境 是 为了 美 我们 的 城市。Wǒmen bǎohù huánjìng shì wèile měihuà wǒmen de chéngshì.We protect the environment in order to beautify our city.
  • 每年 我们 的 绿 面积 都 在 扩大。Měinián wǒmen de lǜhuà miànjī dōu zài kuòdà.Every year our green[ified] area is expanding.

From Verb to Noun

Part of speech can be quite fluid in Chinese, and using the suffix -化 to change a noun or an adjective into a verb does not mean that verb can't also be used as a noun! So keep in mind that -化 can be not only "-ize" and "-ify," but also "-ization" and "-ification."

  • 个性gèxìng-huàpersonalize, personalization
  • 现代xiàndài-huàmodernize, modernization
  • měihuàbeautify, beautification

Sources and further reading

Books

HSK5