空位 (kōng wèi) — vacant seat; vacant position (e.g., job opening) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

vacant seatvacant position (e.g., job opening)

Measure word · 个

Examples

空位。
Zhè jiā diàn yǐng yuàn hái yǒu bù shǎo kōng wèi.
This cinema still has quite a few vacant seats.
空位。
Wǒ men gōng sī xiàn zài yǒu yí gè cái wù zhǔ guǎn de kōng wèi.
Our company currently has a vacant position for a finance manager.
空位。
Tíng chē chǎng yǐ jīng méi yǒu kōng wèi le.
The parking lot has no vacant spaces anymore.

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.

位wèiseat; position

空 'empty' and 位 'seat/position' give a vacant seat or opening.

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.

穴工空

Meaning part形符xíngfú

穴穴xuécave, hole

Sound part声符shēngfú

工

工gōng空kōng

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

空 is built from 穴, a cave or hole, and 工, which 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

Sound part声符shēngfú

立

立lì位wèi

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

位 combines 人 (man), related to people, with 立, which gives the sound. It was often simply written as 立.

Appears in

Workplace & Office

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