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当年 (dāng nián) — in those days, back then, in that year

Definition

当年 (dāngnián) refers to a past year tied to a specific remembered time — "back then, in those years." Pairs naturally with 当时 ("at that moment"), which is a narrower point in time rather than a stretch of years.

noun
in those daysback thenin that year

Examples

  • 当年。
    dāng nián Zhè lǐ hái shì yí piàn huāng dì.
    Back then this place was still a stretch of wasteland.
  • 当年，。
    Tā dāng nián cái èr shí suì, jiù yǐ jīng dāng jīng lǐ le.
    He was only twenty back then and already a manager.
  • 当年？
    Nǐ dāng nián wèi shén me méi qù liú xué?
    Why didn't you go study abroad back then?

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.

当dāngthat
年niányear

The part “当” means 'that', and “年” means 'year', together referring to those past years.

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 當; 当 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
田田tiánfield
Sound part声符shēngfú
尚
尚shàng當dāng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 當 combines 田 (field) with 尚; the evidence describes fields facing each other.

Open 当 →

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
禾禾héwheat; grain
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén年nián
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

年 pairs 禾 (grain) with 人, which gives the sound. Its original meaning was harvest, and it later came to mean a year.

Open 年 →
Appears in
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