<p>The Pinyin Chinese-English Dictionary, produced by a huge committee at the 北京外語學院 headed by 吳景榮, is a good resource for this type of idiomatic usage.</p>

<p>PYCED says '抓紧: to grasp firmly; to pay close attention to' and gives as an example: 必須抓紧糧倉 'We must pay close attention to grain (supplies).'  抓紧 literally means to hold tightly, but is now used mostly in this metaphorical sense.  I don't think it automatically implies it should be done 'hastily'.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T02:32:26.750Z
There are interpretations of 抓紧 as rush, rush in, so I would in the first instance have 'rush-develop', which is the right sense in my sentence I believe. I just changed it to 'hurriedly develop'. Can't see any use for 'hold tight' here.
Pedroski
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T03:26:46.287Z
要“抓紧”。就是说，党委对主要工作不但一定要“抓”，而且一定要“抓紧”。什么东西只有抓得很紧，毫不放松，才能抓住。抓而不紧，等于不抓。
《毛主席语录》

"Grasp firmly." That is to say, the Party committee must not merely "grasp", but must "grasp firmly", its main tasks. One can get a grip on something only when it is grasped firmly, without the slightest slackening. Not to grasp firmly is not to grasp at all.
wpt
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2015-08-18T03:49:21.897Z
必須抓紧糧倉 must have/get a firm hold on the grain (supplies). In the context of my text, he does not want 'a firm hold on the vaccine (supplies)', there is no vaccine, and we need one post haste. It is the best solution. That is where I am getting the sense of 'rush' from. Without the rest of the text you are at a disadvantage, sorry about that, but I don't want to bore everyone with an enormously long post.
Pedroski
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T12:43:37.603Z
regarding answer: it seems reassuring that online dictionaries (iciba, etc.) say the same thing and more, also 1979 edition of PYCED already has:firmly grasp;pay close attention to: ~学习 attend to one's studies in earnest; study hard/~时机 seize the  opportunity／~时间 make the  best use of one＇s  time／抓而不紧，等于不抓。Not to grasp firmly is not to grasp at all/必須...,必须把棉花~，必须把布匹~，（see answer），cotton and cotton cloth, also in standard 汉英词典
user6065
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T17:26:26.670Z
@Pedroski I will have to disagree with you in terms of 'hastily'.  I believe your conclusion is base on the fact that, having a solution (Vaccine) asap is the best solution to the situation described.  However that's only part of what 抓紧 means here.  抓紧 is a metaphor wpt described.  I would interrupt it something like "dedicate all your time / effort / attention into developing a vaccine, while the best scenario is to have the vaccine the soonest"
Alex
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-19T03:37:39.307Z
Don't worry Alex, I don't mind disagreement. It would be a sad world if we all had exactly the same opinion! I won't cry!
Pedroski
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T01:59:19.747Z
2015-08-18T01:59:19.747Z
wpt
<p>This text is talking about 甲型H1N1流感疫情。</p>

<p>女：那么我们应该作哪些准备？
男：抓紧疫苗研制是重中之重。然而，在没有有效的疫苗之前，提高大众的健康意识和公共卫生意识是最有效的</p>

<p>Edit: added a bit to make it clearer.</p>

<p>Edit again: A friend told me to rewrite it thus:</p>

<p>抓紧时间研制疫苗是重中之重。I think that definitely gives a sense of urgency.</p>

<p>The most important thing is to hurriedly develop a vaccine. ...</p>

<p>That gives me 抓紧 = hurriedly. Acceptable?? Or are there nuances here that I am missing?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T01:08:11.933Z
http://dictionary.reverso.net/chinese-english/%E6%8A%93%E7%B4%A7   make the most of
user6065
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T01:13:29.900Z
Reechen, that doesn't really fit well here. Can you use that and write the Englis h sentence? Please try.
Pedroski
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T02:41:07.163Z
Wouldn't that be 坚持不懈？
Pedroski
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T04:11:40.230Z
Think this as 抓紧时间
hello_harry
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-18T04:57:22.897Z
That's what I'm thinking, definitely a sense of 'rush, urgent', but maybe I 'm getting that from the whole text, not this phrase, so not enough context. Sorry.
Pedroski
<meaning-in-context>
How to translate 抓紧 here？
# How to translate 抓紧 here？

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-08-18)

This text is talking about 甲型H1N1流感疫情。

女：那么我们应该作哪些准备？
男：抓紧疫苗研制是重中之重。然而，在没有有效的疫苗之前，提高大众的健康意识和公共卫生意识是最有效的

Edit: added a bit to make it clearer.

Edit again: A friend told me to rewrite it thus:

抓紧时间研制疫苗是重中之重。I think that definitely gives a sense of urgency.

The most important thing is to hurriedly develop a vaccine. ...

That gives me 抓紧 = hurriedly. Acceptable?? Or are there nuances here that I am missing?

**Tags:** meaning-in-context

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: http://dictionary.reverso.net/chinese-english/%E6%8A%93%E7%B4%A7   make the most of  
> **username_0**: Reechen, that doesn't really fit well here. Can you use that and write the Englis h sentence? Please try.  
> **username_0**: Wouldn't that be 坚持不懈？  
> **username_2**: Think this as 抓紧时间  
> **username_0**: That's what I'm thinking, definitely a sense of 'rush, urgent', but maybe I 'm getting that from the whole text, not this phrase, so not enough context. Sorry.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2015-08-18. Score: 2

The Pinyin Chinese-English Dictionary, produced by a huge committee at the 北京外語學院 headed by 吳景榮, is a good resource for this type of idiomatic usage.

PYCED says '抓紧: to grasp firmly; to pay close attention to' and gives as an example: 必須抓紧糧倉 'We must pay close attention to grain (supplies).' 抓紧 literally means to hold tightly, but is now used mostly in this metaphorical sense. I don't think it automatically implies it should be done 'hastily'.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: There are interpretations of 抓紧 as rush, rush in, so I would in the first instance have 'rush-develop', which is the right sense in my sentence I believe. I just changed it to 'hurriedly develop'. Can't see any use for 'hold tight' here.  
> **username_3**: 要“抓紧”。就是说，党委对主要工作不但一定要“抓”，而且一定要“抓紧”。什么东西只有抓得很紧，毫不放松，才能抓住。抓而不紧，等于不抓。 《毛主席语录》  "Grasp firmly." That is to say, the Party committee must not merely "grasp", but must "grasp firmly", its main tasks. One can get a grip on something only when it is grasped firmly, without the slightest slackening. Not to grasp firmly is not to grasp at all.  
> **username_0**: 必須抓紧糧倉 must have/get a firm hold on the grain (supplies). In the context of my text, he does not want 'a firm hold on the vaccine (supplies)', there is no vaccine, and we need one post haste. It is the best solution. That is where I am getting the sense of 'rush' from. Without the rest of the text you are at a disadvantage, sorry about that, but I don't want to bore everyone with an enormously long post.  
> **username_1**: regarding answer: it seems reassuring that online dictionaries (iciba, etc.) say the same thing and more, also 1979 edition of PYCED already has:firmly grasp;pay close attention to: ~学习 attend to one's studies in earnest; study hard/~时机 seize the  opportunity／~时间 make the  best use of one＇s  time／抓而不紧，等于不抓。Not to grasp firmly is not to grasp at all/必須...,必须把棉花~，必须把布匹~，（see answer），cotton and cotton cloth, also in standard 汉英词典  
> **username_4**: @username_0 I will have to disagree with you in terms of 'hastily'.  I believe your conclusion is base on the fact that, having a solution (Vaccine) asap is the best solution to the situation described.  However that's only part of what 抓紧 means here.  抓紧 is a metaphor wpt described.  I would interrupt it something like "dedicate all your time / effort / attention into developing a vaccine, while the best scenario is to have the vaccine the soonest"  
> **username_0**: Don't worry username_4, I don't mind disagreement. It would be a sad world if we all had exactly the same opinion! I won't cry!  

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