人墙 (rén qiáng) — human wall

Definition

A 'human wall' (人墙) is a line of people standing shoulder-to-shoulder to block or defend — used figuratively in protests, sports, and security. The concrete character 人 (people) gives a more vivid, image-driven sense than abstract terms like 屏障.

noun
human wall
Measure word · 道

Examples

  • 人墙，。
    Qiú mí men zǔ chéng le rén qiáng, zǔ dǎng duì fāng qiú yuán.
    The fans formed a human wall, blocking the opposing players.
  • ，人墙。
    Zài kàng yì huó dòng zhōng, mín zhòng shǒu lā shǒu zǔ chéng rén qiáng.
    In the protest, the people held hands to form a human wall.
  • ，。
    Fáng shǒu duì yuán pái chéng rén qiáng, zhǔn bèi fá rèn yì qiú.
    The defenders lined up in a human wall, ready for the free kick.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

人rénpeople
墙qiángwall

人墙 uses 墙, 'wall', for a barrier made of 人, 'people'.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 牆; 墙 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
嗇嗇sèwheat in a granary
Sound part声符shēngfú
爿
爿pán牆qiáng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 牆, 爿 gives the sound and 嗇, showing wheat in a granary, gives the wall meaning. The simplified 墙 is a later short form.

Open 墙 →

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