一番 (yī fān) — (classifier) a round of; a bout of; a thorough… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A quantifier for one round / bout of an action or effort (一番研究, 一番考虑). Used to emphasize the thoroughness or intensity of the activity, not its duration.

classifier

a round ofa bout ofa thorough (effort/process)

Examples

一番。
Tā jué dìng nǔ lì yī fān.
He decided to make a good effort.
一番。
Wǒ xū yào hǎo hǎo yán jiū yī fān.
I need to do a thorough study.
一番，。
Jīng guò yī fān kǎo lǜ, tā tóng yì le.
After some consideration, he agreed.

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.

一 means one, 番 means a round or bout; together they mean a single round.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

釆田番

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

釆

釆biàn番fān

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

番 is built from 釆 and 田: 釆 supplies a sound, and 田 is the meaning part, though the original sense is unclear.

Appears in

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