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从军 (cóng jūn) — to enlist, to join the military

Definition

Literary/formal verb meaning 'to enlist in the military', typically used for historical or patriotic contexts (e.g. wartime service). It is a separable verb: 从军 / 从过军.

verb
to enlistto join the military

Examples

  • 从军。
    Tā shí bā suì nà nián cóng jūn le.
    He enlisted at the age of eighteen.
  • ，。
    Tā cóng guò jūn, suǒ yǐ duì jūn yíng shēng huó hěn shú xi.
    He has served in the military, so he's very familiar with camp life.
  • ，从军。
    Èr zhàn qī jiān, hěn duō nián qīng rén cóng jūn jiù guó.
    During WWII, many young people joined the military to save the country.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

从cóngjoin
军jūnarmy

从 (“join”) and 军 (“army”) together mean to enter military service.

Characters in this word

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 從; 从 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
从
从cóng從cóng
Same sound today

The traditional form 從 pairs 辵 (walk) with 从, which gives the sound; the character was originally written 从.

Open 从 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 軍; 军 is its simplified writing.

  • 車車jūcart; chariot
  • 勹勹bāoto surround

In the traditional form 軍, 車 shows the chariot sense, while the part now written 勹 is a sound part, not the 'surround' 勹. Simplified 军 is a later shorthand.

Open 军 →
Appears in
Military & Defense

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