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人满为患 (rén mǎn wéi huàn) — overcrowded; too many people causing congestion or trouble; (of an organization) overstaffed

Definition

An idiom for overcrowding, literally 'people so many they become trouble.' Highlights the negative connotation — the crowd itself IS the problem, not just a busy scene.

idiom
overcrowdedtoo many people causing congestion or trouble(of an organization) overstaffed

Examples

  • 人满为患。
    Zhè ge lǚ yóu jǐng diǎn zài jié jià rì cháng cháng rén mǎn wéi huàn.
    This tourist spot is often overcrowded on holidays.
  • ，人满为患。
    Gōng sī zuì jìn cái le yì pī yuán gōng, yuán lái zǎo jiù rén mǎn wéi huàn le.
    The company recently laid off some employees; it was already overstaffed.
  • 人满为患，。
    Dì tiě zhàn rén mǎn wéi huàn, lián zhàn de dì fāng dōu méi yǒu.
    The subway station is so overcrowded that there's no standing room.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

人满people are full
人rénpeople满mǎnfull
主谓Subject + predicate
为患become trouble
为wèibecome患huàntrouble
动宾Verb + object

人满 (“people are full”) and 为患 (“become trouble”) together mean overcrowding causes trouble.

Characters in this word

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

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →

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 滿; 满 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
㒼
㒼㒼滿mǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 滿 pairs 水, showing water, with 㒼, giving the sound. The simplified 满 is a later shorthand, not the original shape.

Open 满 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 為; 为 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 為 showed a hand holding an elephant; the simplified 为 is a later shorthand.

Open 为 →

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
串
串chuàn患huàn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

患 is made from 心, a heart, plus 串, which gives the sound. Some old explanations also read the upper part as piercing through the heart.

Open 患 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set PhrasesSociety & Public Life

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