合二为一

合二為一

hé'èrwéiyī

idiom

Meanings

1 to merge two into one
2 to combine two things into a single whole

Characters

to combine; to join

to be; to become

Examples

公司决定把两个部门合二为一，以提高效率。

Gōngsī juédìng bǎ liǎng gè bùmén hé'èrwéiyī, yǐ tígāo xiàolǜ.

The company decided to merge the two departments into one to improve efficiency.

这两种方案可以合二为一，取长补短。

Zhè liǎng zhǒng fāng'àn kěyǐ hé'èrwéiyī, qǔ cháng bǔ duǎn.

These two proposals can be merged into one, combining their strengths.

他把工作和兴趣合二为一，过得非常充实。

Tā bǎ gōngzuò hé xìngqù hé'èrwéiyī, guò de fēicháng chōngshí.

He merged his work and his hobby into one, and lives a very fulfilling life.

Tips

usage

Often used for merging organizations, plans, or concepts. The apostrophe in 'hé'èrwéiyī' separates 'é' from the next syllable 'èr' per Hanyu Pinyin orthography.

memory

Literally 'combine two, make one' — the characters read in order tell you the meaning.

Stroke Order

合 hé

二 èr

为 wèi

一 yī