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用来

用來
yònglái
verb HSK 5 #3,593

Meanings

  1. 1 to be used for; in order to

Characters

用
yòng
to use
来
lái
to come; used to (purpose)
Use it to come to a purpose — 'to be used for.'

Examples

这把刀是用来切菜的。
Zhè bǎ dāo shì yòng lái qiē cài de.
This knife is used for cutting vegetables.
这笔钱用来买房子。
Zhè bǐ qián yòng lái mǎi fángzi.
This money is for buying a house.
他用来学习的时间越来越多。
Tā yòng lái xuéxí de shíjiān yuè lái yuè duō.
He spends more and more time studying.
这种材料可以用来做衣服。
Zhè zhǒng cáiliào kěyǐ yòng lái zuò yīfu.
This kind of material can be used to make clothes.

Tips

grammar
用来 connects a tool/resource to its purpose: A + 用来 + verb. The 是...的 pattern is common: 这是用来...的 (this is used for...).
usage
用于 (yòngyú) is more formal/written, while 用来 is natural in spoken Chinese.

Stroke Order

用 yòng
来 lái