开后门 (kāi hòu mén) — (fixed expression) to use personal connections to get something done through unofficial channels; to pull strings

Definition

Idiom meaning to get favors through personal connections rather than official channels — 'pull strings'. Carries a negative connotation: unfair or corrupt access.

idiom
(fixed expression) to use personal connections to get something done through unofficial channelsto pull strings

Examples

  • 开后门。
    Tā tōng guò kāi hòu mén ná dào le zhè ge gōng zuò.
    He got this job through the back door.
  • 开后门。
    Gōng sī yán gé jìn zhǐ kāi hòu mén bàn shì.
    The company strictly prohibits using backdoor channels to handle matters.
  • ，开后门。
    Zài zhōng guó, hěn duō rén duì kāi hòu mén zhè zhǒng xíng wéi fēi cháng fǎn gǎn.
    In China, many people strongly dislike this kind of backdoor dealing.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

开kāiopen
后门back door
后hòuback门méndoor
偏正Modifier + head

Opening a 后门 suggests using unofficial access to get something done.

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 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 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 後; 后 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 後 showed 夊 (foot) bound by 幺 (thread), a foot caught by a rope and lagging behind; the simplified 后 is a later abbreviation, and 后 also has a different meaning.

Open 后 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 門; 门 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 門 pictures a gate as two door shapes side by side; the simplified 门 is a later shorthand.

Open 门 →

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