TongTong
Sign in

河边 (hé biān) — riverside; riverbank

Definition

noun
riversideriverbank

Examples

  • 河边。
    Wǒ men xǐ huan zài hé biān sàn bù.
    We like to take a walk by the riverside.
  • 河边。
    hé biān Yǒu yì pái liǔ shù.
    There is a row of willow trees along the riverbank.
  • 河边。
    Tā zhù zài hé biān de yí dòng lǎo fáng zi lǐ.
    He lives in an old house by the riverside.

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.

河hériver
边biānside

'河' gives river, '边' gives side, together naming a riverside.

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
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
何
何hé河hé
Same sound today

河 pairs 水 (water) with 何, which gives the sound. The 水 part marks it as a word for a river.

Open 河 →

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 邊; 边 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuòwalking; movement
Sound part声符shēngfú
臱
臱mián邊biān(r)
Same sound today

The traditional form 邊 pairs 辶 (walking; movement) with the sound part 臱; the simplified 边 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 边 →
Appears in
Geography & Landforms

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.