(fáng) — (bound form) house; room; (surname) Fang; (bound form) branch of a family; lineage

Definition

房 (fáng) is a bound morpheme, almost always part of a compound (房间, 房子, 房东, 书房, 厨房). It also appears as the surname Fang.

bound form
houseroom(surname) Fangbranch of a familylineage

Examples

  • Tā xìng fáng.
    His surname is Fang.
  • Wǒ zài zhǎo yì jiān fáng jiān.
    I am looking for a room.
  • Wǒ men de fáng dōng hěn rè qíng.
    Our landlord is very warm-hearted.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
door
Sound part声符shēngfú
fāngfáng
Same sound today

房 pairs 戶 (door) with 方 (fāng) as a sound part; 方 can also fit 'side,' as in a side room beside the main room.

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