插口 (chā kǒu) — to break in, to interrupt, to chip in (during a conversation)

Definition

A colloquial verb meaning 'to break in / interrupt' (a conversation). Often appears as 插不上口 when one can't get a word in because others are talking fast.

verb
to break into interruptto chip in (during a conversation)

Examples

  • 插口。
    Qǐng bú yào zài bié rén shuō huà shí suí biàn chā kǒu.
    Please don't casually interrupt when others are speaking.
  • ，。
    Dà jiā dōu shuō dé hěn kuài, wǒ chā bú shàng kǒu.
    Everyone was talking so fast that I couldn't get a word in.
  • 插口。
    Zhè ge huì yì yǔn xǔ dà jiā suí shí chā kǒu tí wèn.
    This meeting allows everyone to interrupt at any time to ask questions.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

插chāinsert
口kǒumouth

插 (insert) + 口 (mouth) gives the sense of putting one's mouth into a conversation.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 插 →

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

The form 口 looks like an open mouth.

Open 口 →

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