和面 (huó miàn) — to knead dough

Definition

和面 (huó miàn) is a separable verb meaning 'to knead dough': 和 is the verb, 面 is the object. Split it for aspect/tense markers — 和了面, 和过面, 和完面 — but never insert other words between them.

verb
to knead dough

Examples

  • 和面。
    Mā ma zài chú fáng huó miàn.
    Mom is kneading dough in the kitchen.
  • 。
    Wǒ jīn tiān hé le bàn tiān miàn.
    I kneaded dough for half a day today.
  • ，。
    Tā hé guò yí cì miàn, dàn shì méi zuò hǎo.
    She kneaded dough once, but didn't do it well.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

和héknead/mix
面miàndough/flour

和 (knead/mix) and 面 (dough/flour) mean kneading dough.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
禾
禾hé和hé
Same sound today

和 pairs 禾, which gives the sound, with 口 (mouth), the meaning part; the reference connects this shape to harmony.

Open 和 →

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

面 originally drew a man’s face, with one eye exaggerated; the horizontal stroke was added later.

Open 面 →

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