鼓励

鼓勵
gǔlì
verb/noun HSK 5 #3,394

Meanings

  1. 1 to encourage; to urge
  2. 2 encouragement

Characters

To rouse and urge on — to encourage, like beating a drum to rally troops.

Examples

Lǎoshī jīngcháng gǔlì xuéshēng.
The teacher often encourages the students.
Xièxiè nǐ de gǔlì!
Thank you for your encouragement!
Fùmǔ yīnggāi duō gǔlì háizi.
Parents should encourage their children more.
Tā de huà gěi le wǒ hěn dà de gǔlì.
His words gave me great encouragement.

Tips

usage
鼓励 is almost always positive. Common patterns: 鼓励某人 (encourage someone to do something), 受到鼓励 (receive encouragement), 互相鼓励 (encourage each other).
usage
Compare with 激励 (jīlì, to motivate/inspire — stronger), 鼓舞 (gǔwǔ, to inspire/uplift — more about morale), and 表扬 (biǎoyáng, to praise — more about commending).

Stroke Order