修订

• Pinyin: xiū dìng
• Hanzi breakdown: 修 = 亻 + 攸 + 彡 (correct/refine); 订 = 讠 + 丁 (fix/determine)

Meaning

To revise and amend; to make corrections and improvements to a text, law, or policy.

Used in formal contexts for revising documents, laws, standards, or plans. Implies a systematic, considered process of correction and improvement rather than casual editing.

Examples

1. 国家立法机构对这部施行多年的法律进行了全面修订，使其更加适应当前社会发展的需要。 The national legislature comprehensively revised this law that has been in effect for many years, making it better suited to the needs of current social development.
2. 出版社在再版前聘请专家对教材内容进行了修订，纠正了初版中的若干错误与不当表述。 Before reprinting, the publisher hired experts to revise the textbook content, correcting several errors and inappropriate phrasings from the first edition.
3. 委员会经多轮讨论后，对原方案进行了修订，在保留核心框架的同时调整了若干实施细节。 After multiple rounds of discussion, the committee revised the original plan, keeping the core framework while adjusting several implementation details.

Usage Guide

Context: law, publishing, policy, academia

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 该行业标准已逾十年未曾更新，有关部门正计划组织专家对其进行系统修订以适应新形势。(This industry standard has not been updated for over a decade; the relevant authorities are planning to organise experts for a systematic revision to adapt to the new situation.)
• 论文经导师提出修订意见后，作者对文章结构、论据和表述方式均做了较大幅度的调整。(After the supervisor provided revision comments, the author made substantial adjustments to the paper's structure, arguments, and expression.)

Don't Say

• 修订你的态度 — 修订 applies to documents, texts, or formal policies; for adjusting attitude or behaviour use 改变 or 端正; attitudes are not revised like documents

Origin & History

修 (correct/refine) + 订 (fix/determine) — to correct and refine a text or regulation

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal