升 meaning in English

shēng

to ascend; to rise; to promote; to elevate

HSK 3verb4 strokes

Meaning of 升

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

shēng

to ascend; to rise
to promote; to elevate
liter
unit of dry measure for grain (= one liter or one-tenth dou 斗[dou3])

shēng

to ascend; to rise (variant of 升[sheng1])
to promote; to elevate (variant of 升[sheng1])

shēng

to ascend; to rise (variant of 升[sheng1])
to promote; to elevate (variant of 升[sheng1])

How to use 升

升 is used for things going up, such as prices, temperature, the sun, or a person's rank, and it also means liter. It often appears in compounds like 上升 (shàngshēng), 升级 (shēngjí) and 毫升 (háoshēng). Example: 太阳升起来了。(Tàiyáng shēng qǐlái le.) The sun has risen.

升 (shēng) looks a bit like a hand holding up a measuring scoop with a long handle. Picture lifting that scoop of grain upward, and you have both meanings: a liter measure and the idea of rising.

Common mistake: Learners often confuse 升 with 开 (kāi, to open) or 午 (wǔ, noon), which look similar. In 升 the left stroke at the top is a slanted throw stroke and the long vertical on the right goes all the way through. Also keep the first tone, shēng, and do not mix it up with 生 (shēng, to be born), which sounds the same but means something different.

升 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

我wǒ要yào借jiè机jī提tí升shēng我wǒ的de语yǔ言yán能néng力lì。

I must take the opportunity to improve my language ability.

汤tāng姆mǔ和hé玛mǎ丽lì都dū是shì直zhí升shēng机jī飞fēi行xíng员yuán。

Tom and Mary are both helicopter pilots.

我wǒ看kàn见jiàn一yī架jià直zhí升shēng飞fēi机jī在zài头tóu顶dǐng飞fēi。

I saw a helicopter flying overhead.

上shàng个gè月yuè我wǒ们men收shōu集jí了le五wǔ升shēng雨yǔ水shuǐ。

Last month, we collected five liters of rainwater.

努nǔ力lì提tí升shēng英yīng文wén能néng力lì。

Try to polish up your English.

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

升 shēng · to ascend · 4 strokes

Related words

Words that share a character with 升.

上升	shàngshēng	to rise; to go up
毫升	háoshēng	milliliter
升高	shēnggāo	to raise; to ascend
直升机	zhíshēngjī	helicopter
提升	tíshēng	to promote (to a higher-ranking position); to lift; to hoist
升级	shēngjí	to go up by one grade; to be promoted; to escalate (in intensity)
升值	shēngzhí	to rise in value; to appreciate
升学	shēngxué	to enter the next grade school
晋升	jìnshēng	to promote to a higher position
攀升	pānshēng	to clamber up; (of prices etc) to rise
升温	shēngwēn	to become hot; temperature rise
回升	huíshēng	to rise again after a fall; to pick up

Questions about 升

What does 升 mean?

升 (shēng) means "to ascend; to rise; to promote; to elevate" and is used as a verb.

How do you write 升?

升 is made of 1 character: 升 (4 strokes). That is 4 strokes in total.

Is 升 an HSK word?

Yes. 升 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

What is the difference between 升 and 涨 (zhǎng)?

Both can mean to go up. 涨 is most common for prices, water levels and wages, as in 涨价 (zhǎngjià). 升 is broader and a bit more formal, covering temperature, rank, flags and the sun.

How do I say liter in Chinese?

Use 升 (shēng) for liter and 毫升 (háoshēng) for milliliter. For example, 一升水 (yì shēng shuǐ) means one liter of water. In casual speech some people also say 公升 (gōngshēng).