客厅 (kè tīng) — living room | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

客厅 is the 'living room' of a home or apartment. Compare with 大厅, a 'hall' or large public room in a building (hotels, airports).

noun

living room

Measure word · 间

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.

客 guest and 厅 hall combine to name the room for receiving guests, now the living room.

Characters in this word

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

宀各客

Meaning part形符xíngfú

宀宀miánroof

Sound part声符shēngfú

各

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 客, 宀 is a roof and 各 gives the sound; the character meant a guest.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 廳; 厅 is its simplified writing.

广聽廳

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

聽

聽tīng廳tīng

Same sound today

The traditional form 廳 pairs 广 (house) with 聽, which gives the sound; the simplified 厅 is a shorthand and its parts are not the original ones.

Appears in