How common it is
升级 appears often in everyday Chinese, so it is worth practicing early and reviewing often.
Pronunciation focus
Say shēngjí slowly first, then repeat it in a short phrase. Listen for the tone shape.
Usage note
“升级”意思是让东西变得更好或更新，比如升级手机软件。
“Shēng jí” yì si shì ràng dōng xī biàn dé gèng hǎo huò gèng xīn, bǐ rú shēng jí shǒu jī ruǎn jiàn.
"Upgrade" means to make something better or newer, such as upgrading phone software.
Context note
我们经常升级电脑，让它运行更快。
Wǒ men jīng cháng shēng jí diàn nǎo, ràng tā yùn xíng gèng kuài.
We often upgrade computers to make them run faster.
5 examples
我需要升级我的游戏。
wǒ xū yào shēng jí wǒ de yóu xì。
I need to upgrade my game.
这个软件升级了。
zhè ge ruǎn jiàn shēng jí le。
This software has been upgraded.
升级后手机更快了。
shēng jí hòu shǒu jī gèng kuài le。
After the upgrade, the phone is faster.
我们升级了教室的电脑。
wǒ men shēng jí le jiào shì de diàn nǎo。
We upgraded the classroom computers.
升级系统需要时间。
shēng jí xì tǒng xū yào shí jiān。
Upgrading the system takes time.
5 mini stories
爸爸升级了家里的电脑。现在上网更快了。
bà ba shēng jí le jiā lǐ de diàn nǎo。 xiàn zài shàng wǎng gèng kuài le。
Dad upgraded the home computer. Now the internet is faster.
我的游戏升级了。多了很多新关卡。
wǒ de yóu xì shēng jí le。 duō le hěn duō xīn guān qiǎ。
My game was upgraded. There are many new levels.
学校升级了图书馆的电脑。我们可以查更多书。
xué xiào shēng jí le tú shū guǎn de diàn nǎo。 wǒ men kě yǐ chá gèng duō shū。
The school upgraded the library computers. We can search for more books.
手机升级后拍照更清晰。我拍了很多照片。
shǒu jī shēng jí hòu pāi zhào gèng qīng xī。 wǒ pāi le hěn duō zhào piàn。
After the phone upgrade, photos are clearer. I took many photos.
我们升级了玩具机器人。它会跳舞了。
wǒ men shēng jí le wán jù jī qì rén。 tā huì tiào wǔ le。
We upgraded the toy robot. It can dance now.