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会员 (huì yuán) — member

Definition

会员 names a person who belongs to a club, organization, or paid program (会员卡, 会员制). Compare with 员 (a general 'member' suffix, e.g. 职员) and 成员 (members of a team or formal group).

noun
member
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 。
    Zhè zhāng huì yuán kǎ kě yǐ ràng wǒ xiǎng shòu yōu huì.
    This membership card lets me enjoy discounts.
  • 会员。
    Zhǐ yǒu huì yuán cái néng cān jiā zhè ge huó dòng.
    Only members can participate in this event.
  • 会员。
    Zhè jiā jù lè bù de huì yuán kě yǐ miǎn fèi tíng chē.
    Members of this club can park for free.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

会huìorganization
员yuánperson

会 names an organization, and 员 names a person connected with it, so 会员 means a member.

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 →

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 員; 员 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
鼎鼎dǐngding
Sound part声符shēngfú
〇
〇líng員yuán
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 員, 〇 supplies the sound and 鼎 supplies the meaning; the simplified 员 is a shortened form.

Open 员 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 4Social Roles & Status5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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