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躲开 (duǒ kāi) — to dodge, to get out of the way, to avoid (by moving aside)

Definition

躲开 means physically stepping aside to avoid something — a sudden car, a person, trouble — more concrete and active than 避免 (which is abstract ‘avoid’ of ideas or risks). Often pairs with 了 to mark a quick, completed dodge.

verb
to dodgeto get out of the wayto avoid (by moving aside)

Examples

  • ，躲开。
    Yí liàng chē tū rán chōng guò lái, wǒ gǎn jǐn duǒ kāi le.
    A car suddenly rushed over, and I quickly got out of the way.
  • ，躲开。
    Tā wèn le yí gè hěn nán de wèn tí, dàn shì xiǎo míng qiǎo miào dì duǒ kāi le.
    He asked a very difficult question, but Xiaoming cleverly dodged it.
  • ，躲开，。
    Qián miàn zài dǎ jià, wǒ men zuì hǎo duǒ kāi, bié rě má fan.
    There's a fight up ahead — we'd better steer clear and avoid trouble.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

躲duǒdodge
开kāiaway

躲开 combines 躲 dodge and 开 away to mean dodge aside.

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
身身shēnbody
Sound part声符shēngfú
朵
朵duǒ躲duǒ
Same sound today

躲 uses 身 to show a body and 朵 to give the sound; 朵 is also noted as "to move".

Open 躲 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 開; 开 is its simplified writing.

  • 門門méndoor
  • 一一yīlatch and/or wooden pole that shuts a door
  • 廾廾gǒnga pair of hands

The traditional form 開 shows 廾, a pair of hands, and 一, a latch or pole, inside 門, a door: hands opening a latched door. The simplified 开 is a shorthand form, so its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 开 →
Appears in
Safety & Danger

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