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原位 (yuán wèi) — original position; normal position; home position; in situ

Definition

原位 means 'original position' — used for things (machines, equipment, objects) returning to or staying where they were placed. The technical phrase ∼癌 ('carcinoma in situ') uses this same literal sense.

noun
original positionnormal positionhome positionin situ

Examples

  • ，原位。
    Tā àn le yí xià àn niǔ, jī qì jiù huí dào le yuán lái de yuán wèi.
    He pressed a button and the machine returned to its original position.
  • “原位”。
    Yī shēng zài jiǎn chá bào gào zhōng xiě le "yuán wèi ái" sān gè zì.
    The doctor wrote "carcinoma in situ" in the examination report.
  • 原位。
    Zhè zhǒng shè bèi zài bān yùn guò chéng zhōng yào bǎo chí yuán wèi.
    This type of equipment must maintain its original position during transport.

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.

原yuánoriginal
位wèiposition

原 says original, 位 says position; together they give the place where something was.

Characters in this word

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

原 combines 泉 (spring) and 厂 (cliff), picturing a spring bursting from a cliff-side, which gives the sense of origin or source.

Open 原 →

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
人人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
立
立lì位wèi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

位 combines 人 (man), related to people, with 立, which gives the sound. It was often simply written as 立.

Open 位 →
Appears in
Abstract Concepts

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