半天 (bàn tiān) — half a day; (fig.) a long time, quite a while | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

As a quantifier, 半天 means literally 'half a day' and can also mean 'a long time' (e.g., 我等了半天 'I waited forever'). 好久 is also 'a long time' but feels about duration; 半天 emphasizes the wait felt like half a day passed.

quantifier

half a day(fig.) a long timequite a while

Measure word · 个

Examples

半天。
Tā gōng zuò le bàn tiān jiù qù xiū xi le.
He worked for half a day and then went to rest.
半天，。
Wǒ děng le bàn tiān, tā hái shì méi lái.
I waited for a long time, but she still hasn't come.
半天，。
Wǒ men liáo le bàn tiān, tiān dū hēi le.
We chatted for quite a while, and it got dark.

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.

半 means half and 天 means day; half a day can suggest a long wait.

Characters in this word

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

八八bāto divide
牛牛niúcow

The shape pairs 八 (to divide) with 牛 (cow), showing a cow cut into two halves.

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

丁

丁dīng天tiān

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

The shape comes from a frontal standing man 大 with a head; 天 pairs 大 with 丁 for sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 3 Time of Day

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