当兵 (dāng bīng) — to serve in the army; to be a soldier; to join…

Definition

当兵 means to join and serve as a soldier — it describes entering military service as a career or duty, not just any military role.

verb

to serve in the armyto be a soldierto join the army

当兵。
Tā dà xué bì yè hòu jiù qù dāng bīng le.
He went to join the army after graduating from university.
，。
Tā dāng le sān nián bīng, qù nián cái tuì wǔ.
He served in the army for three years and was discharged only last year.
当兵，。
dāng bīng Suī rán xīn kǔ, dàn shì hěn duàn liàn rén.
Serving in the army is tough, but it's very character-building.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

当 gives serving and 兵 gives soldier, meaning serve in the army.

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 當; 当 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

尚

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 當 combines 田 (field) with 尚; the evidence describes fields facing each other.

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

兵 combines 斤, a short axe, with 廾, two hands, showing a pair of hands holding a weapon.

Appears in