将

• Pinyin: jiāng
• Hanzi breakdown: 将 = 爿 (half of bed) + 寸 (inch, hand) — to take, to lead; grammaticalized as future marker

Meaning

Will; shall; be about to (future marker). As a preposition: with; by; using. A formal literary word indicating future action or introducing an object.

As an adverb, 将 marks future or imminent action, more formal than 要 or 会. Common in written Chinese, news, and formal speech: 将于明天举行 (will be held tomorrow). As a preposition, introduces the object of an action in formal contexts: 将问题解决 (resolve the problem). Also appears in 将要 (about to), 将来 (future), 将近 (close to).

Examples

1. 公司将于下个月推出新产品。 The company will launch a new product next month.
2. 他将多年的积蓄都投入了这个项目。 He invested all his savings over the years into this project.
3. 政府将采取措施控制房价上涨。 The government will take measures to control rising housing prices.

Usage Guide

Context: written language, news, official announcements, formal speech

Tone: formal

Do Say

• 会议将在三点开始。(The meeting will start at three o'clock.)
• 请将垃圾分类处理。(Please sort and dispose of the garbage.)

Don't Say

• 在日常口语中说'我将去超市' (Don't use 将 in casual speech for simple future — say 我要去超市 or 我会去超市; 将 sounds overly formal in everyday conversation)

Origin & History

将 originally depicted a hand holding meat as an offering. It evolved to mean 'to take' or 'to lead,' and later developed grammatical functions as a future marker and preposition.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal