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旧时 (jiù shí) — old times, former days (formal or literary time noun)

Definition

A literary time noun for 'old times / former days', used mainly in written Chinese to contrast the past with the present. Heavier and more formal than the everyday phrase 以前.

noun
old timesformer days (formal or literary time noun)

Examples

  • 旧时，。
    jiù shí, Zhè lǐ shì yí zuò fán huá de dū shì.
    In old times, this was a bustling metropolis.
  • 旧时。
    jiù shí De shè huì jié gòu yǔ jīn tiān wán quán bù tóng.
    The social structure of old times is completely different from today.
  • 旧时。
    Zhè bù jì lù piàn chóng xiàn le jiù shí chūn jié de qìng zhù fāng shì.
    This documentary recreates the way the Spring Festival was celebrated in old times.

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.

旧jiùold
时shítime

旧时 combines 旧 (old) and 时 (time), meaning former days.

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 舊; 旧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
雈雈huánowl
Sound part声符shēngfú
臼
臼jiù舊jiù
Same sound today

The traditional form of 旧 is 舊, which shows 雈, an owl, above 臼, which gives the sound.

Open 旧 →

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 時; 时 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun; day
Sound part声符shēngfú
之
之zhī時shí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 時 pairs 日 (sun/day) with 之 as the part that gives the sound; the simplified 时 is not the form described.

Open 时 →
Appears in
Time (Abstract)

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