满街 (mǎn jiē) — the whole street; everywhere on the street

Definition

满街 means 'all over the street / everywhere on the street,' used like an adverbial to stress that something fills the whole street. It is more emphatic than the neutral 每条街 ('every street') and conveys saturation rather than enumeration.

noun
the whole streeteverywhere on the street

Examples

  • 满街，。
    mǎn jiē Dōu shì rén, fēi cháng rè nao.
    The whole street is full of people, very lively.
  • 满街。
    mǎn jiē De dēng long zài yè lǐ liàng qǐ lái.
    The lanterns all over the street light up at night.
  • ，满街。
    Jié rì qī jiān, mǎn jiē de shāng diàn guà mǎn le cǎi qí.
    During the holiday, shops all over the street are decorated with colorful flags.

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.

满mǎnfull
街jiēstreet

Full plus street means the whole street or everywhere on it.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 滿; 满 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
㒼
㒼㒼滿mǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 滿 pairs 水, showing water, with 㒼, giving the sound. The simplified 满 is a later shorthand, not the original shape.

Open 满 →

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
行行xíng
Sound part声符shēngfú
圭
圭guī街jiē
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

街 combines 行 and 圭: 行 is the meaning part, and 圭 is the sound part. Originally, 圭 drew a pair of ritual axes, not earth.

Open 街 →

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