梳理

• Pinyin: shū lǐ
• Hanzi breakdown: 梳 = 木 + 疏 (wood + sparse — to comb); 理 = 王 + 里 (jade + inside — to sort; to organise)

Meaning

To comb through; to sort out; to organise and clarify.

Both literal (to comb and tidy hair) and extensively used figuratively to mean organising, clarifying, or systematically sorting through information, issues, relationships, or ideas. A very common verb in academic writing, business reports, and official documents. Key collocations: 梳理思路 (to organise one's thinking); 梳理问题 (to sort out issues); 梳理关系 (to clarify relationships).

Examples

1. 课题组启动研究前，先梳理了国内外相关成果。 Before starting the study, the research team first sorted through related results from home and abroad.
2. 这份报告梳理了中美科技关系十年的转变。 This report sorts out the changes in China-U.S. technology relations over the past decade.
3. 谈判前，他们先梳理各方利益边界和弹性空间。 Before negotiations, they first sorted out each side's interest boundaries and room for flexibility.

Usage Guide

Context: research, analysis, writing, meetings, planning

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 写综述论文时，作者要先梳理核心论点和方法。(When writing a review paper, the author must first sort out the core arguments and methods.)
• 项目管理中，定期梳理进度、依赖和风险很关键。(In project management, regularly sorting out progress, dependencies, and risks is crucial.)

Don't Say

• 梳理 when a simpler verb would suffice — if you just mean 'to check' or 'to review' something briefly, use 检查 (to check) or 回顾 (to review); 梳理 implies a more thorough, systematic process of sorting and clarifying, not a quick scan

Origin & History

梳 (to comb — wood + sparse) + 理 (to manage; to organise — 王 jade + 里 inside; to sort/order)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal