待命 (dài mìng) — to await orders; to stand by (for orders) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A military/formal verb meaning to stand by awaiting orders — troops, emergency teams, or units wait, ready to act. Distinct from everyday 等待, which is general-purpose waiting for a person, time, or result.

verb

to await ordersto stand by (for orders)

Examples

待命。
Bù duì yǐ jīng jìn rù dài mìng zhuàng tài.
The troops have entered a standby state.
，。
Tā men zài zāi qū dài le sān tiān de mìng, yì zhí méi yǒu jiē dào xīn de zhǐ lìng.
They stood by in the disaster area for three days without receiving new orders.
待命，。
Yìng jí xiǎo zǔ suí shí dài mìng, zhǔn bèi chū fā.
The emergency team is standing by, ready to depart.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

待dàito wait

待 means to wait and 命 means orders, so 待命 is to wait for orders.

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.

彳寺待

Meaning part形符xíngfú

彳彳chì

Sound part声符shēngfú

寺

寺sì待dài

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

待 is built from 彳 on the left and 寺 on the right; 彳 is tied to the meaning, and 寺 gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

令

令lìng命mìng

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

命 combines 口, a mouth, with 令, which gives the sound.

Appears in

Military & Defense 5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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