会合 (huì hé) — to meet up (at a planned time and place); to converge, to join together (of multiple groups or things)

Definition

Formal written verb meaning 'to meet up at a planned place' (people, troops) or 'to converge' (rivers, roads) at one point. Note: 会合 emphasizes the joining; 见 (jiàn) is the everyday 'meet/see'.

verb
to meet up (at a planned time and place)to convergeto join together (of multiple groups or things)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 会合。
    Wǒ men míng tiān zài chē zhàn huì hé.
    We'll meet up at the station tomorrow.
  • 会合。
    Liǎng tiáo hé zài zhè lǐ huì hé.
    The two rivers converge here.
  • 会合。
    Jūn duì zài zhǐ dìng dì diǎn huì hé.
    The troops assembled at the designated location.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

会huìmeet
合héjoin

会 (meet) and 合 (join) combine to mean come together or converge.

Characters in this word

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 會; 会 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
合合héto meet
Sound part声符shēngfú
𡆧
𡆧𡆧會huì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

Traditional 會 pairs 合 (to meet) with 𡆧, an original form for ironware, to give the sound. The simplified 会 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 会 →

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

合 shows 亼 and 口 arranged as two mouths speaking together.

Open 合 →

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