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开课 (kāi kè) — (of a school) to begin classes (after a break); (of a teacher) to offer a course; to teach a subject

Definition

开课 (kāi kè) means classes begin or a course is offered — note the object distinction: 学校开课 (school reopens after a break) vs 老师开课 (teacher offers a course).

verb
(of a school) to begin classes (after a break)(of a teacher) to offer a courseto teach a subject

Examples

  • 开课。
    Xué xiào xià zhōu yī zhèng shì kāi kè.
    The school will officially begin classes next Monday.
  • 。
    Wáng lǎo shī zhè xué qī kāi le liǎng mén kè.
    Teacher Wang is offering two courses this semester.
  • 开课。
    kāi kè Shí jiān shì měi zhōu sān xià wǔ.
    The class time is every Wednesday afternoon.

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
课kèclass

开 means open and 课 means class; together they mean classes begin or a course is offered.

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 課; 课 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánto say
Sound part声符shēngfú
果
果guǒ課kè
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 課 pairs 言 (to say) with 果 as a sound part; the simplified 课 is a shorthand and its right side is not a sound part.

Open 课 →
Appears in
School & Education

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