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航空 (háng kōng) — (verb) to transport by air; to engage in aviation

Definition

航空 is the noun/verb for aviation — the industry, transport, or activity of flying through the atmosphere. It covers both carrying people/cargo by air and the field itself; for the act of flying use 飞行, and for outer space use 航天.

verb
to transport by airto engage in aviation

Examples

  • 航空。
    Wǒ men jì huà háng kōng zhè xiē bāo guǒ dào shàng hǎi.
    We plan to air-ship these packages to Shanghai.
  • 航空。
    Tā dì yī cì háng kōng qù ōu zhōu chū chāi.
    He flew to Europe on business for the first time.
  • 航空。
    Zhè jiā gōng sī měi tiān háng kōng dà liàng huò wù.
    This company air-freights a large volume of goods every day.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

航hángnavigate
空kōngair

航 means to navigate and 空 means air, giving navigation in the air.

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
舟舟zhōuboat
Sound part声符shēngfú
亢
亢kàng航háng
Same sound today

航 shows a boat with 舟, and 亢 gives the character its sound.

Open 航 →

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
穴穴xuécave, hole
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng空kōng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

空 is built from 穴, a cave or hole, and 工, which gives the sound.

Open 空 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 6Air Travel5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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