曾用名 (céng yòng míng) — former name (used on official forms or documents)

Definition

Official term meaning 'former name' — a name previously used by a person, typically listed on forms or ID applications when it differs from the current legal name.

noun
former name (used on official forms or documents)

Examples

  • 曾用名。
    Qǐng tián xiě nín de céng yòng míng.
    Please fill in your former name.
  • 曾用名，。
    Tā de céng yòng míng shì zhāng wěi, hòu lái gǎi chéng le zhāng míng.
    His former name was Zhang Wei; later he changed it to Zhang Ming.
  • 曾用名。
    Shēn qǐng biǎo shàng yāo qiú tí gōng suǒ yǒu céng yòng míng.
    The application form requires you to provide all former names.

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.

曾用formerly used
曾céngformerly用yònguse
偏正Modifier + head
名míngname

曾 means formerly, 用 means use, and 名 means name; together they denote a name formerly used.

Characters in this word

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

曾 was first drawn as a cooker for steaming food. The 'once' meaning came from borrowing the sound, so the picture does not directly show that meaning.

Open 曾 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

用 was formed by adding a handle to an earlier form.

Open 用 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

名 puts 夕 (crescent moon) above 口 (mouth), showing a name spoken in the dark.

Open 名 →

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