整个 (zhěng gè) — whole, entire | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

整个 emphasizes 'the whole, as a single unit' (整个公司 the whole company), more concrete than 完全/全. Use 整 for 'tidy/in order', and avoid 一 here — 一 means 'one', not 'whole'.

adjective

wholeentire

Examples

整个。
zhěng gè Gōng sī dōu fàng jià le.
The entire company is on vacation.
整个。
Tā bǎ zhěng gè dàn gāo dōu chī wán le.
He ate the whole cake.
整个。
zhěng gè Chéng shì dōu zài qìng zhù xīn nián.
The whole city is celebrating the New Year.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

整 means whole and 个 means a unit; together they describe something as a whole.

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.

敕正整

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

正

正zhèng整zhěng

Same sound today

整 pairs 敕 as the meaning side with 正 as the sound side.

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 個; 个 is its simplified writing.

亻固個

Meaning part形符xíngfú

亻Written in full as人rénperson

Sound part声符shēngfú

固

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

For 个, the form 個 pairs 亻 (person) with 固 as a sound part.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 4 HSK 2.0 Level 5 1000 Most Frequent Chinese Words Quantity & Amount 2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words 3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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