TongTong
Sign in

关机 (guān jī) — to turn off (a device, machine, phone, etc.); to finish shooting (a film, TV show, etc.)

Definition

关机 is the separable verb meaning 'to turn off a device/phone.' 关 alone is 'to close/shut' and can mean turning something off, but 关机 specifically pairs with machines and electronics.

verb
to turn off (a device, machine, phone, etc.)to finish shooting (a film, TV show, etc.)

Examples

  • 关机。
    Shuì jiào qián jì de guān jī shǒu jī.
    Remember to turn off your phone before sleeping.
  • 关机。
    Zhè bù diàn yǐng míng tiān guān jī.
    This film finishes shooting tomorrow.
  • 。
    Wǒ guān le jī cái chū mén.
    I turned off the device before going out.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

关guānturn off/close
机jīmachine

关 and 机 combine the idea of stopping a machine, meaning turning off a device or finishing a film shoot.

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 關; 关 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
門門méndoor
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢇅
𢇅𢇅關guān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 关, the traditional form 關 shows 門 as a door and 𢇅 as two wooden sticks locking it, with ring-like marks on top.

Open 关 →

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
木木mùtree; wood
Sound part声符shēngfú
几
几jǐ机jī
Same sound today

The left part is 木 (tree; wood), and the right part 几 gives the sound.

Open 机 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 3Computers & Internet

Browse more HSK 3 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.