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日后 (rì hòu) — someday; in the future; later on (referring to an indefinite future time)

Definition

日后 is a formal, written word for an indefinite future time ('someday, in the days to come'). More literary than 以后, and broader than 今后 ('from now on').

noun
somedayin the futurelater on (referring to an indefinite future time)

Examples

  • 日后。
    rì hòu Wǒ men yí dìng huì zài jiàn miàn.
    We will definitely meet again someday.
  • 日后。
    rì hòu Zài shāng liang zhè jiàn shì ba.
    Let's discuss this matter another time.
  • 日后？
    Nǐ rì hòu yǒu shén me dǎ suàn?
    What plans do you have for the future?

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.

日rìday
后hòuafter

日 means day and 后 means after, so it points to time after days.

Characters in this word

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

日 originally drew the sun. A mark was added inside to tell it apart from similar square shapes.

Open 日 →

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Time (Abstract)

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