暗访 (àn fǎng) — to secretly investigate, to make an undercover… | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

暗访 (àn fǎng) means making a secret, on-site visit to investigate or inspect — typically by journalists, police, or inspectors posing as ordinary customers or visitors.

verb

to secretly investigateto make an undercover visit

Examples

暗访。
Jì zhě àn fǎng le zhè jiā gōng chǎng de tiáo jiàn.
The journalist made an undercover visit to this factory's conditions.
暗访。
Jǐng fāng tōng guò àn fǎng zhǎng wò le fàn zuì zhèng jù.
The police gathered criminal evidence through an undercover investigation.
暗访。
Gōng sī pài tā àn fǎng jìng zhēng duì shǒu de mén diàn.
The company sent him to secretly investigate the competitor's stores.

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.

暗ànsecretly

访fǎngvisit/investigate

“暗” adds secretly, and “访” gives visit or investigate, making a secret investigation.

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.

日音暗

Meaning part形符xíngfú

日日rìsun

Sound part声符shēngfú

音

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

暗 pairs 日 (sun) with 音, which gives the sound.

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 訪; 访 is its simplified writing.

言方訪

Meaning part形符xíngfú

言言yántalk

Sound part声符shēngfú

方

方fāng訪fǎng

Same sound today

The traditional form 訪 pairs 言 (talk) with 方 to give the sound; the simplified 访 is a shorthand, so its right side is not the historical part.

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