朝外 (cháo wài) — outward; toward the outside

Definition

adverb

outwardtoward the outside

朝外，。
Tā cháo wài kàn le yì yǎn, què rèn méi yǒu rén gēn zōng.
He glanced outward to confirm no one was following.
朝外，。
Chuāng hu cháo wài kāi zhe, lěng fēng zhí wǎng lǐ guàn.
The window was open outward, and cold wind poured straight in.
朝外，。
Mén cháo wài tuī cái néng dǎ kāi, bié lā cuò le.
The door opens by pushing outward, don't pull it wrong.

Characters in this word

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

Originally, 朝 showed the sun rising above the ground while the moon was still in the sky, giving the sense of morning.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

月

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

外 pairs 卜 with 月, a crescent moon; in its older form, the 卜 part had a horizontal bar extending outward, giving the sense of outside.