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大院 (dà yuàn) — large courtyard or compound (especially of an institution or work unit); residential compound of a government organ, military unit, or state-owned enterprise

Definition

Refers to an enclosed residential or work compound, typically a government, military, or state-owned enterprise unit. Distinct from the traditional 四合院 courtyard house — it is a modern institutional compound, not an old family courtyard.

noun
large courtyard or compound (especially of an institution or work unit)residential compound of a government organ, military unit, or state-owned enterprise
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 大院，。
    Tā cóng xiǎo zài bù duì dà yuàn lǐ zhǎng dà, duì nà zhǒng jí tǐ shēng huó hěn shú xi.
    He grew up in a military compound and is very familiar with that kind of collective life.
  • 大院，。
    Zhè ge jī guān dà yuàn de mén kǒu yǒu jǐng wèi zhàn gǎng, wài rén bù néng suí biàn jìn rù.
    There are guards at the entrance of this government compound; outsiders cannot enter casually.
  • 大院。
    Lǎo běi jīng hěn duō dà yuàn dōu bǎo liú zhe chuán tǒng de sì hé yuàn gé jú.
    Many old Beijing compounds still preserve the traditional courtyard-house layout.

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.

大dàlarge
院yuàncourtyard

大院 names a large courtyard or enclosed area, with 大 giving the sense of size and 院 giving the sense of yard.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The form 大 is a picture of a person standing and facing forward, not of someone stretching their arms.

Open 大 →

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
阝Written in full as阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
完
完wán院yuàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

院 is built from 阝, written in full as 阜, and 完, which gives the sound.

Open 院 →
Appears in
Buildings & StructuresHome & Housing

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