场合 (chǎng hé) — (noun) occasion; social setting (especially where certain behavior is expected); (noun) context; situation (broader sense of circumstances)

Definition

场合 (chǎnghé) means the social occasion or setting where certain behavior is expected (e.g. public, formal, informal). Compared to 场景 ('scene' in a film or hypothetical scenario), 场合 is about real social situations and what is appropriate there.

noun
occasionsocial setting (especially where certain behavior is expected)contextsituation (broader sense of circumstances)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 场合。
    Zài gōng gòng chǎng hé xià yào zhù yì shuō huà de yǔ qì.
    You should pay attention to your tone of voice in public settings.
  • 场合。
    Tā xuǎn zé le yí gè ān jìng de chǎng hé qiú hūn.
    He chose a quiet occasion to propose.
  • 场合。
    Zài fēi zhèng shì chǎng hé kě yǐ chuān dé suí biàn yì diǎn.
    You can dress a bit more casually at informal occasions.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

场chǎngscene or setting
合héfitting together

场 points to a scene or setting and 合 points to circumstances fitting together, so 场合 means an occasion or context.

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 場; 场 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
土土tǔearth
Sound part声符shēngfú
昜
昜yáng場chǎng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 場 pairs 土 (earth) with 昜 as a sound part; the simplified 场 is a later abbreviation, so its parts do not have that historical role.

Open 场 →

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

合 shows 亼 and 口 arranged as two mouths speaking together.

Open 合 →
Appears in
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