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一面 (yī miàn) — (noun) one side; one aspect; (adverb) simultaneously (used in the structure 一面...一面...)

Definition

一面 has two distinct uses: as a noun, 'one side / one aspect' of something (e.g. 桌子的一面, 问题的一面), and as an adverb in the 一面…一面… pattern meaning 'simultaneously', like 一边…一边… (one is HSK 7, the other HSK 3).

noun
one sideone aspect
adverb
simultaneously (used in the structure 一面...一面...)

Examples

  • 一面。
    Wǒ men zhī kàn dào le wèn tí de yī miàn.
    We only saw one side of the problem.
  • 一面。
    Tā yī miàn chàng gē yí miàn tiào wǔ.
    He sings and dances at the same time.
  • 一面。
    Zhuō zi de yī miàn shì bái sè de.
    One side of the table is white.

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yīone
面miànside

一 gives one and 面 gives side/face, yielding one side; paired use expresses actions happening together.

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.

Open 一 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

面 originally drew a man’s face, with one eye exaggerated; the horizontal stroke was added later.

Open 面 →

Grammar

Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-93000 Most Frequent Chinese Words5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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