关押 (guān yā) — to imprison, to lock up

Definition

verb

to imprisonto lock up

关押。
Jǐng chá bǎ zuì fàn guān yā qǐ lái le.
The police locked up the criminal.
关押。
Tā yīn wèi dào qiè bèi guān yā le sān nián.
He was imprisoned for three years for theft.
关押。
Zhè ge jiān yù guān yā le hěn duō fàn rén.
This prison holds many prisoners.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

“关” (lock up) and “押” (detain) are parallel actions, together meaning to confine someone.

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 關; 关 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

門門méndoor

Sound part声符shēngfú

𢇅

𢇅𢇅關guān

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 关, the traditional form 關 shows 門 as a door and 𢇅 as two wooden sticks locking it, with ring-like marks on top.

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

扌甲押

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒu

Sound part声符shēngfú

甲

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

押 pairs 扌, a hand, with 甲, which gives the sound.

Appears in