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开头 (kāi tóu) — (noun) beginning, start; (verb) to begin, to start

Definition

开头 (kāitóu) is the everyday word for 'beginning / to start' — like 开始, but 开头 sounds more concrete (the opening part of a story, talk, or action), while 开始 is broader and more neutral. Negate as 不开头 or use a synonym.

noun
beginningstart
verb
to beginto start

Examples

  • 开头。
    Zhè ge gù shi de kāi tóu hěn xī yǐn rén.
    The beginning of this story is very attractive.
  • 开头。
    Wǒ men xiān cóng jiǎn dān de wèn tí kāi tóu ba.
    Let's start with simple questions first.
  • ，。
    Tā zhī kāi le yí gè tóu, hòu miàn de shì hái méi zuò.
    He only made a start; the rest hasn't been done yet.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

开kāiopen
头tóubeginning

“开” means to open and “头” means beginning, giving the sense of starting.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 開; 开 is its simplified writing.

  • 門門méndoor
  • 一一yīlatch and/or wooden pole that shuts a door
  • 廾廾gǒnga pair of hands

The traditional form 開 shows 廾, a pair of hands, and 一, a latch or pole, inside 門, a door: hands opening a latched door. The simplified 开 is a shorthand form, so its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 开 →

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
頁頁yèhead
Sound part声符shēngfú
豆
豆dòu頭tóu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.

Open 头 →
Appears in
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