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双向 (shuāng xiàng) — bidirectional, two-way (of roads, signals, etc.); interactive, two-way (of communication, courses, selection, etc.)

Definition

双向 describes two-way flow where both sides give and receive — used for roads, communication, and selection. Compare 互动 (verb, the action of interacting) and 交互 (more technical, often data/systems).

adjective
bidirectionaltwo-way (of roads, signals, etc.)interactivetwo-way (of communication, courses, selection, etc.)

Examples

  • 双向，。
    Zhè tiáo mǎ lù shì shuāng xiàng chē dào, kāi chē yào xiǎo xīn.
    This road is a two-lane two-way road, so be careful driving.
  • 双向，。
    Gōng sī cǎi yòng shuāng xiàng xuǎn zé, yuán gōng hé dān wèi dōu kě yǐ tiāo xuǎn.
    The company uses two-way selection, so both employees and the organization can choose.
  • 双向。
    shuāng xiàng Gōu tōng bǐ dān fāng miàn tōng zhī gèng yǒu xiào.
    Two-way communication is more effective than one-way notification.

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.

双shuāngtwo
向xiàngdirection

The parts 双 meaning two and 向 meaning direction combine to mean bidirectional.

Characters in this word

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

双 is made of two 又 parts side by side. Repeating 又 gives the sense of a pair.

Open 双 →

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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