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中式 (zhòng shì) — pass the imperial examinations

Definition

中式 means 'Chinese-style' and pairs directly with nouns like 装修, 衣服, 早餐. It contrasts mainly with 西式 ('Western-style'); in this row the meaning 'pass the imperial examinations' is a historical/archaic sense not used in modern Chinese.

verb
pass the imperial examinations

Examples

  • 中式。
    Zhè jiā cān tīng de zhòng shì zhuāng xiū hěn yǒu tè sè.
    This restaurant's Chinese-style decoration is very distinctive.
  • 中式。
    Tā xǐ huan chuān zhòng shì yī fu.
    She likes to wear Chinese-style clothing.
  • 中式。
    zhòng shì Zǎo cān bǐ xī shì zǎo cān qīng dàn.
    Chinese-style breakfast is lighter than Western-style breakfast.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The original picture showed a flagpole with a drum in the middle, set up in the center of a field.

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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
工工gōngwork
Sound part声符shēngfú
弋
弋yì式shì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

式 pairs 工, meaning work, with 弋, which gives the sound.

Open 式 →
Appears in
Exams & GradesHistory

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