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上万 (shàng wàn) — tens of thousands; over ten thousand

Definition

An indefinite number meaning 'tens of thousands' — a rough upper bound, not an exact figure. Used as an adjective before a noun (e.g., 上万人, 上万块).

numeral
tens of thousandsover ten thousand

Examples

  • 上万。
    shàng wàn Rén cān jiā le zhè cì mǎ lā sōng bǐ sài.
    Tens of thousands of people took part in this marathon.
  • 上万。
    Tā huā le shàng wàn kuài qián mǎi xià nà fú huà.
    He spent tens of thousands of dollars to buy that painting.
  • ，上万。
    Měi nián chūn tiān, zhè ge gōng yuán xī yǐn shàng wàn yóu kè.
    Every spring, this park attracts tens of thousands of tourists.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

上shàngreach
万wànten thousand

上 (reach) + 万 (ten thousand) means over ten thousand.

Characters in this word

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

上 is drawn as a short horizontal line placed above a longer arc, marking a position above that arc.

Open 上 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 萬; 万 is its simplified writing.

For 万, the form 萬 was originally a picture of a scorpion, later borrowed for its sound to write 'ten thousand'; the scorpion picture is unrelated to that number.

Open 万 →
Appears in
Numbers & Counting

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