众院 (zhòng yuàn) — House of Representatives (abbreviation for 众议院)

Definition

Short form of 众议院, the lower house of the U.S. Congress (House of Representatives). Used in news and political writing; the full form 众议院 is more common in formal contexts.

noun
House of Representatives (abbreviation for 众议院)

Examples

  • 众院。
    zhòng yuàn Tōng guò le zhè xiàng xīn fǎ àn.
    The House of Representatives passed this new bill.
  • 众院。
    Tā zài zhòng yuàn gōng zuò le èr shí nián.
    He worked in the House of Representatives for twenty years.
  • 众院。
    zhòng yuàn De yì zhǎng xuān bù le tóu piào jié guǒ.
    The Speaker of the House announced the voting results.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 眾; 众 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 眾 shows three people under a sun-like shape, meaning a crowd gathered under the sun; the simplified 众 is a later shorthand.

Open 众 →

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
阝Written in full as阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
完
完wán院yuàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

院 is built from 阝, written in full as 阜, and 完, which gives the sound.

Open 院 →

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