小剧场 (xiǎo jù cháng) — small theater, intimate theater (also referring to experimental/avant-garde theater as an art form)

Definition

A small, intimate performance space (often black-box style) used for experimental, avant-garde, or student productions. Pairs naturally with 实验戏剧, 演出, and 戏剧.

noun
small theaterintimate theater (also referring to experimental/avant-garde theater as an art form)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 小剧场。
    Zhè ge xiǎo jù cháng zhǐ néng zuò yì bǎi rén.
    This small theater can only seat a hundred people.
  • 小剧场。
    Tā xǐ huan zài xiǎo jù cháng lǐ kàn shí yàn xì jù.
    She likes to watch experimental plays in the small theater.
  • 小剧场。
    Wǒ men xué xiào de xiǎo jù cháng měi zhōu dōu yǒu yǎn chū.
    Our school's small theater has performances every week.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

小xiǎosmall
剧场theater
剧jùdrama场chǎngvenue
偏正Modifier + head

小 gives the sense small, while 剧场 names a drama venue, yielding an intimate theater.

Characters in this word

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

  • 八八bāto divide; to separate
  • 丨丨gǔnsmall object

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

Open 小 →

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 劇; 剧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
刀刀dāoknife
Sound part声符shēngfú
豦
豦jù劇jù
Same sound today

The traditional form 劇 pairs 豦, which gives the sound, with 刀, a knife; the simplified 剧 is a later shorthand.

Open 剧 →

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 →

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