动用

dòngyòng

to utilize

HSK 7

Character Breakdown

Usage and Meaning

The verb 动用 (dòngyòng) means to mobilize or make use of resources, funds, personnel, or other assets. It often implies an active decision to deploy something that is reserved or not ordinarily used.

Common Contexts

动用 is frequently used in formal or official contexts, such as government, military, finance, or business, where resources like money, troops, or connections are called upon to address urgent needs or problems.

Collocations and Patterns

  • 动用资金: to mobilize funds, often in financial or emergency contexts.
  • 动用军队: to deploy or mobilize the military.
  • 动用: to use personal connections or networks.

Nuances

Using 动用 suggests a deliberate and sometimes exceptional use of resources, often implying that these resources are limited or reserved. It differs from simply (to use) by emphasizing the activation or calling upon of something that is not routinely used.

Common Confusion

Do not confuse 动用 with (diàoyòng), which is often used in technical contexts meaning to call or invoke (e.g., a function in programming). 动用 is more about mobilizing tangible resources or assets.

Example Sentences

公司不得不动用储备资金来应对突发的经济危机。

Gōngsī bùdébù dòngyòng chǔbèi zījīn lái yìngduì tūfā de jīngjì wēijī.

The company had to mobilize reserve funds to cope with the sudden economic

政府动用军队维持社会秩序。

Zhèngfǔ dòngyòng jūnduì wéichí shèhuì zhìxù.

The government mobilized the military to maintain social order.

他动用自己的人脉资源,成功获得了这份工作。

Tā dòngyòng zìjǐ de rénmài zīyuán, chénggōng huòdéle zhè fèn gōngzuò.

He used his personal connections to successfully get the job.