咣当 (guāng dāng) — (onomatopoeia) crash, bang (sound of a heavy object falling or colliding)

Definition

Onomatopoeia for a single loud crash or bang — a heavy object hitting, falling, or slamming shut (doors, boxes, pots). Often doubled as 咣当一声, like "bang!" or "crash!" in English.

onomatopoeia
crashbang (sound of a heavy object falling or colliding)

Examples

  • 咣当，。
    guāng dāng Yī shēng, mén bèi fēng chuī dé guān shàng le.
    Bang! The door was blown shut by the wind.
  • ，咣当。
    Tā bǎ xiāng zi wǎng dì shàng yì rēng, guāng dāng xiǎng le yí xià.
    He threw the box onto the ground, and it went crash.
  • 咣当，。
    Chú fáng lǐ chuán lái guāng dāng de shēng yīn, wǒ gǎn jǐn pǎo guò qù kàn.
    A crash came from the kitchen, and I hurried over to check.

Origin

Single-morpheme word
构词法gòucífǎ
拟声nǐshēngOnomatopoeia

The characters imitate a sound; their individual meanings play no part.

咣guāng
当dāng

咣当 imitates a crash or bang; the characters carry no meaning of their own here.

Sound-only characters

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
光
光guāng咣guāng
Same sound today

咣 pairs 口 (mouth) with 光, which gives the sound guāng.

Open 咣 →

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 當; 当 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
田田tiánfield
Sound part声符shēngfú
尚
尚shàng當dāng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 當 combines 田 (field) with 尚; the evidence describes fields facing each other.

Open 当 →

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