开矿 (kāi kuàng) — to open up or exploit a mine

Definition

开 (kāi) here means 'to start/exploit', not 'to open' a door — so 开矿 is a separable verb meaning 'to open (up) a mine' for extraction. Insert other elements between 开 and 矿, as in 开了两个新矿.

verb
to open up or exploit a mine

Examples

  • 开矿。
    Zhè ge gōng sī jì huà zài shān qū kāi kuàng.
    This company plans to open a mine in the mountainous area.
  • 。
    Tā men qù nián kāi le liǎng gè xīn kuàng.
    They opened two new mines last year.
  • 开矿，。
    Tā yǐ qián kāi kuàng guò, hěn yǒu jīng yàn.
    He has mined before and is very experienced.

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/exploit
矿kuàngmine

开 means open or exploit, and 矿 is a mine, so the action is opening a mine.

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 礦; 矿 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
石石shístone
Sound part声符shēngfú
廣
廣guǎng礦kuàng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 礦 shows 石, meaning stone, beside 廣, which gives the sound. The simplified 矿 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 矿 →

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