施加

• Pinyin: shī jiā
• Hanzi breakdown: 施 = 方 + 也 (to carry out, to apply); 加 = 力 + 口 (to add, to increase, to impose)

Meaning

To exert; to apply; to bring to bear. To impose a force, pressure, or influence on someone or something.

Always takes an object that is an abstract force: pressure (压力), influence (影响), constraints (限制), sanctions (制裁). The subject is typically an agent with power or authority. Not used for physical forces in engineering — use 施加 for social, political, and psychological contexts. Collocations: 施加压力 (exert pressure), 施加影响 (exert influence), 施加制裁 (impose sanctions).

Examples

1. 多个西方国家联合对该政权施加经济制裁，希望通过贸易封锁迫使其回到谈判桌上。 Several Western countries jointly imposed economic sanctions on the regime, hoping a trade blockade would force it back to the negotiating table.
2. 上司不断向他施加压力，要求他在规定期限内完成远超实际工作量的任务，令他长期处于高度焦虑状态。 His boss kept applying pressure, demanding he finish tasks far beyond a realistic workload by the deadline, leaving him in a prolonged state of high anxiety.
3. 大国在双边谈判中频繁施加外交影响，使小国在主权问题上几乎没有自主表达立场的空间。 Major powers frequently bring diplomatic influence to bear in bilateral talks, leaving smaller countries with almost no room to express an independent position on sovereignty issues.

Usage Guide

Context: politics, diplomacy, psychology, management

Tone: assertive

Do Say

• 国际社会应当通过合法渠道对侵权方施加足够的外交压力，而非诉诸单边的军事手段解决争端。(The international community should exert sufficient diplomatic pressure on the infringing party through legitimate channels, rather than resorting to unilateral military means to resolve the dispute.)
• 心理学研究表明，长期处于他人施加的高度期望压力之下，青少年更容易产生焦虑和自我否定情绪。(Psychological research indicates that adolescents who are consistently subjected to the high-expectation pressure imposed by others are more prone to developing anxiety and self-negating emotions.)

Don't Say

• 施加 with physical/mechanical forces — for physics use 施力 or 给...施力; 施加 is reserved for abstract, social, and political forces

Origin & History

施 (to apply, to carry out) + 加 (to add, to impose)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal