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去向 (qù xiàng) — whereabouts; the direction in which someone or something has gone

Definition

去向 focuses on the direction or destination someone/something has gone, often used for missing people, money, or items. 下落 is the closer near-synonym for 'whereabouts'; 所在 emphasizes a fixed location.

noun
whereaboutsthe direction in which someone or something has gone

Examples

  • 去向。
    Nà běn shū de qù xiàng zhì jīn shì gè mí.
    The whereabouts of that book remains a mystery.
  • 去向。
    Jǐng fāng zhèng zài chá zhǎo shī zōng zhě de qù xiàng.
    The police are searching for the whereabouts of the missing person.
  • 去向。
    Zhè bǐ juān kuǎn de qù xiàng xū yào gōng kāi tòu míng.
    The whereabouts of this donation needs to be made public and transparent.

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.

去qùgo
向xiàngdirection

去 “go” and 向 “direction” form “direction of going,” i.e. whereabouts.

Characters in this word

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

去 pairs 大, a man, with 口, a mouth or object. The evidence reads this as a man leaving a place, a man opening his mouth, or a cover over an object.

Open 去 →

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

向 originally drew 宀 (house) with 口 to show an echo in a place; later it was used for direction.

Open 向 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Directions

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