起草

• Pinyin: qǐ cǎo
• Hanzi breakdown: 起 = 走 + 己 (begin/rise); 草 = 艹 (grass) + 早 (early) (draft — rough/preliminary)

Meaning

To draft; to draw up; to write a preliminary version of an official document or text.

A formal, procedural term used in legal, administrative, and diplomatic contexts. Common collocations: 起草文件 (to draft a document), 起草合同 (to draft a contract), 起草法律 (to draft legislation). Implies careful preparation of official written material.

Examples

1. 法律委员会花费数月时间精心起草了这份具有历史意义的法规草案。 The legal committee spent months carefully drafting this historically significant bill.
2. 这份外交声明由多国代表共同参与起草，历经多轮谈判才得以定稿。 This diplomatic statement was co-drafted by representatives from multiple countries and finalized only after many rounds of negotiations.
3. 秘书长负责起草本次会议的正式纪要，须在三个工作日内完成并送审。 The secretary-general is responsible for drafting the official minutes of this meeting and must complete them within three business days for review.

Usage Guide

Context: legal, government, business

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 律师团队正在加班加点起草这份涉及多方权益的并购协议草案。(The legal team is working overtime to draft this merger agreement involving the interests of multiple parties.)
• 新法规的起草工作广泛征集了社会各界的意见与建议，历时逾一年。(The drafting of the new regulations broadly solicited opinions and suggestions from all sectors of society over more than a year.)

Don't Say

• 我起草了一封给朋友的信 — 起草 is formal and official; use 写 for casual personal correspondence

Origin & History

起 (to begin) + 草 (draft — 草稿 means rough draft) — to begin drafting

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal