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探亲 (tàn qīn) — to visit one's family (especially after a long separation)

Definition

探亲 is to visit one's own family or relatives, often after a long time away. 探望 is for visiting someone (often sick or elderly) and 探 on its own is broader — exploring, scouting, or visiting in general.

verb
to visit one's family (especially after a long separation)

Examples

  • 探亲。
    Měi nián chūn jié tā dōu huí jiā tàn qīn.
    He goes home to visit his family every Spring Festival.
  • ，。
    Wǒ chū guó sān nián, zhī tàn guò yí cì qīn.
    I've been abroad for three years and only visited my family once.
  • 探亲，。
    Zhè cì tàn qīn, tā dǎ suàn zhù liǎng gè xīng qī.
    For this family visit, he plans to stay two weeks.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

探tànvisit
亲qīnrelatives

探 means to visit and 亲 means relatives, so 探亲 is to visit family.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
𥥍
𥥍𥥍探tàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 探, the 扌 part is a hand, and 𥥍 gives the sound.

Open 探 →

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 親; 亲 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
見見jiànsee
Sound part声符shēngfú
辛
辛xīn親qīn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 親 uses 見 (see) for sense and 辛 (a chisel) for sound; the simplified 亲 is a shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 亲 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Family & Kinship

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