宾馆 (bīn guǎn) — hotel; guesthouse | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

宾馆 is a mid-to-upper scale hotel (service, facilities). Among siblings, 旅馆 is smaller and more basic; 饭店 often means restaurant, not hotel. Use 家 for businesses, 个 for a room.

noun

hotelguesthouse

Measure word · 个, 家

Examples

宾馆。
Zhè jiā bīn guǎn lí huǒ chē zhàn hěn jìn.
This hotel is very close to the train station.
宾馆。
Wǒ men dìng le yí gè bīn guǎn de fáng jiān.
We booked a room at a hotel.
宾馆。
Nà jiā bīn guǎn de fú wù hěn hǎo.
That hotel has good service.

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.

宾bīnguest

馆guǎnhall

宾 means guest and 馆 means hall; together they describe a hall for guests.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 賓; 宾 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

貝貝bèi

Sound part声符shēngfú

𡧍

𡧍𡧍賓bīn

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 賓 is built from 𡧍 and 貝: 𡧍 gives the sound, and 貝 relates to the meaning. The simplified 宾 is a later abbreviation, so its parts are not the historical pieces.

Open 宾 →

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 館; 馆 is its simplified writing.

飠官館

Meaning part形符xíngfú

飠Written in full as食shí

Sound part声符shēngfú

官

官guān館guǎn

Same sound today

The traditional form 館 is made of 食, written as 飠 on the left, and 官 on the right; 官 provides the sound. The simplified 馆 is a later shorthand.

Open 馆 →