对外开放 (duì wài kāi fàng) — to open up to the outside world (policy of economic and cultural engagement with foreign countries); the opening-up policy (as a noun phrase)

Definition

Refers specifically to China's national policy of opening to foreign trade, investment, and cultural exchange since 1978. Used as both a verb phrase and a noun phrase for the policy itself.

verb
to open up to the outside world (policy of economic and cultural engagement with foreign countries)the opening-up policy (as a noun phrase)

Examples

  • 1978对外开放。
    Zhōng guó zì 1978 nián kāi shǐ shí xíng duì wài kāi fàng zhèng cè.
    China began implementing the opening-up policy in 1978.
  • 对外开放。
    duì wài kāi fàng Gěi zhè ge chéng shì dài lái le hěn duō wài zī.
    Opening up to the outside world brought a lot of foreign investment to this city.
  • 对外开放，。
    Tā men jiān chí duì wài kāi fàng, xī yǐn le dà liàng wài guó yóu kè.
    They persisted in opening up and attracted a large number of foreign tourists.

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.

对外toward outside
对duìtoward外wàioutside
动宾Verb + object
开放open up
开kāiopen放fàngrelease
联合Side by side

对外 points toward the outside, and 开放 conveys opening up.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 對; 对 is its simplified writing.

For the traditional form 對, the shape comes from an early drawing of 丵 (a digging tool), 土 (earth), and 又 (a hand); it may have meant developing land.

Open 对 →

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
卜卜bǔ
Sound part声符shēngfú
月
月yuè外wài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

外 pairs 卜 with 月, a crescent moon; in its older form, the 卜 part had a horizontal bar extending outward, giving the sense of outside.

Open 外 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 開; 开 is its simplified writing.

  • 門門méndoor
  • 一一yīlatch and/or wooden pole that shuts a door
  • 廾廾gǒnga pair of hands

The traditional form 開 shows 廾, a pair of hands, and 一, a latch or pole, inside 門, a door: hands opening a latched door. The simplified 开 is a shorthand form, so its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 开 →

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
攵Written in full as攴pūhand, action
Sound part声符shēngfú
方
方fāng放fàng
Same sound today

放 uses 方 for its sound and 攵, a hand/action part, to mark an action of release.

Open 放 →

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