HSK 5 · Verbs

保留 bǎoliú “to keep” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 保留 means

  1. to keep
  2. to retain
  3. to have reservations (about sth)
  4. to hold back (from saying sth)
  5. to put aside for later

How to say 保留

  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale保bǎo3rd tone, dipping
  • Pitch chart of the second tone: rises from mid to high, 3 to 5 on the five-level scale留liú2nd tone, rising

保留 in a sentence

  1. 你可以帮我保留这个座位吗？

    Nǐ kěyǐ bāng wǒ bǎoliú zhè ge zuòwèi ma?

    Could you save this seat for me?

    Sentence #866146 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  2. 保留一切权利。

    Bǎoliú yíqiè quánlì.

    All rights reserved.

    Sentence #13504560 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters

How 保留 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 保 (bǎo) with each of its parts in a different colour
保bǎoto defend; to protect; to keep
  • 亻person form of 人 · rénMeaning part
  • 呆dull · dāiSound part

亻 hints at the meaning (person); 呆 (dāi) hints at the sound. Compare it with bǎo.

The character 留 (liú) with each of its parts in a different colour
留liúto leave
  • 卯part of the character
  • 田field · tián

How to write 保留

保 9 strokes · 留 10 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

保留 (bǎoliú) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 保留 (bǎoliú). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 保留

Words with 保

保证bǎozhèng · guarantee保护bǎohù · to protect保持bǎochí · to keep保存bǎocún · to conserve保险bǎoxiǎn · insurance保养bǎoyǎng · to take care of (one’s health)保重bǎozhòng · to take care of oneself保密bǎomì · to keep something secret保管bǎoguǎn · to look after确保quèbǎo · to ensure

Words with 留

留学liúxué · study abroad留学生liúxuéshēng · international student留liú · to stay留下liúxia · to leave behind留神liúshén · to be careful残留cánliú · to remain留念liúniàn · to keep as a memento遗留yíliú · to be left over留恋liúliàn · to be reluctant to leave拘留jūliú · to detain

More words: Thinking & Talking

重视zhòngshì · to take seriously总结zǒngjié · to sum up尊重zūnzhòng · to esteem报道bàodào · to report (news)抱怨bàoyuàn · to complain辩论biànlùn · debate表达biǎodá · to express参考cānkǎo · to consult

FAQs

保留 (bǎoliú) means “to keep” or “to retain”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it bǎoliú: bǎo with a 3rd tone, then liú with a 2nd tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 保留 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type baoliu with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 保留 from the suggestions. Typing baoliu into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
保留 is an HSK 5 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.