TongTong
Sign in

饭后 (fàn hòu) — after a meal (as a time noun)

Definition

noun
after a meal (as a time noun)

Examples

  • 饭后。
    fàn hòu Sàn bù yǒu yì jiàn kāng.
    Walking after a meal is good for health.
  • 饭后。
    Tā xí guàn fàn hòu hē yì bēi chá.
    He is used to drinking a cup of tea after a meal.
  • 饭后。
    fàn hòu Bú yào mǎ shàng yùn dòng.
    Don't exercise immediately after a meal.

Origin

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 飯; 饭 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
食食shífood
Sound part声符shēngfú
反
反fǎn飯fàn
Same sound today

The traditional form 飯 combines 食 (food) with 反 for the sound; the simplified 饭 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical form.

Open 饭 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 後; 后 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 後 showed 夊 (foot) bound by 幺 (thread), a foot caught by a rope and lagging behind; the simplified 后 is a later abbreviation, and 后 also has a different meaning.

Open 后 →
Appears in
Time (Abstract)

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