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传开 (chuán kāi) — to spread (news, rumors, information) widely

Definition

A separable verb meaning news, rumors, or a reputation has spread widely. Splits as 传…开 and commonly takes 到 + place (传到…) for the destination.

verb
to spread (news, rumors, information) widely

Examples

  • 传开。
    Zhè ge xiāo xi hěn kuài chuán kāi le.
    This news spread very quickly.
  • 传开。
    Zhè ge yáo yán chuán kāi bù chū qù.
    This rumor can't get out.
  • 传开。
    Tā de míng shēng yǐ jīng chuán kāi dào le quán guó gè dì.
    His reputation has spread all over the country.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

传chuántransmit
开kāispread out

'传' means transmit and '开' means spread out, so together it means news spreads widely.

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 傳; 传 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
人人rénman
Sound part声符shēngfú
專
專zhuān傳chuán
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 傳 puts 人 (man) beside 專, which gives the sound; the simplified 传 is a later shorthand, and its parts are not the historical ones.

Open 传 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 開; 开 is its simplified writing.

  • 門門méndoor
  • 一一yīlatch and/or wooden pole that shuts a door
  • 廾廾gǒnga pair of hands

The traditional form 開 shows 廾, a pair of hands, and 一, a latch or pole, inside 門, a door: hands opening a latched door. The simplified 开 is a shorthand form, so its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 开 →
Appears in
Communication & Speech

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