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开张 (kāi zhāng) — to open (a shop/business); to start operating; first transaction of a business day; first sale of the day

Definition

开张 (kāi zhāng) is what shops say when they open for the first time or make their first sale of the day — a small, auspicious moment. 营业 means just being open, and 开业 / 开设 cover starting a business more generally.

verb
to open (a shop/business)to start operatingfirst transaction of a business dayfirst sale of the day

Examples

  • 开张。
    Zhè jiā chāo shì míng tiān zhèng shì kāi zhāng.
    This supermarket officially opens tomorrow.
  • 开张，。
    Gāng kāi zhāng, diàn lǐ yí gè gù kè dōu méi yǒu.
    Right after opening, there wasn't a single customer in the store.
  • ，开张。
    Jīn tiān shēng yì bù hǎo, hái méi kāi zhāng ne.
    Business is slow today—we haven't made our first sale yet.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

开kāiopen
张zhāngopen; spread

开 and 张 both suggest opening or spreading out, so the word means to open for business.

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 →

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 張; 张 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
弓弓gōngbow
Sound part声符shēngfú
長
長cháng張zhāng
Same sound today

The traditional form 張 combines 弓, a bow, with 長, which points to the sound; the simplified 张 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 张 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Business & Commerce

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