生長 / 生长
shēngzhǎng
To say grow in Chinese, in the sense of becoming bigger, use 生長 / 生长 (shēngzhǎng). If unsure, use 生長 / 生长. Wiktionary also lists 長 / 长 (zhǎng).
Meaning: (intransitive) to become bigger (verb)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 生長 / 生长 | shēngzhǎng |
| 長 / 长 | zhǎng |
生长 is often used for plants, crops and other living things. 茁壮成长 means to grow strong and healthy.
Which one should you use?
生長 is a more formal verb for biological growth, while 長 / 长 (zhǎng) is more common in casual speech, such as children growing up or hair growing. 增长 is used for growth in numbers, such as population or the economy and 发展 means development, as in the growth of cities or industries.
How does it change in a sentence?
The character 长 is read zhǎng when it means to grow, but cháng when it means long. For growing taller say 长高 and for gaining weight say 长胖.
How do you pronounce it?
In pinyin it is shēngzhǎng, with a high level tone and then a dipping tone.
What mistakes should you avoid?
When talking about a person getting taller, use 长高 rather than 生长 alone.
Did you know?
- The word for 'grow' is etymologically linked to the ancient action of 'stretching' or 'stringing' a bow. The character 长 shares a common root with the word for 'to stretch' because growing is seen as a form of extension.
- While English uses 'grow' for biological, numerical and urban expansion, Chinese uses three distinct verbs: 生长 for living things, 增长 for numbers and 发展 for urban development.
Examples in context
- 这棵树已经生长了十年了。This tree has been growing for ten years.
- 中国的经济增长很快。China's economy is growing rapidly.
- 中美关系的发展非常重要。The development of Sino-U.S. relations is very important.
- 孩子长得真快！The child is growing so fast!
- 我想长大后成为一名医生。I want to become a doctor when I grow up.
- 我的花园里的植物变大了。The plants in my garden have grown bigger.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “grow” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 長, CC BY-SA 4.0.
