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紧凑 (jǐn còu) — compact (of space or design); terse (of writing or speech); tight (of schedule or arrangement)

Definition

A multi-sense adjective: 'compact' for space/design, 'tight' for schedules, 'terse' for writing. Of the HSK siblings, 简洁 and 简练 overlap with the writing sense — 紧凑 is broader, covering space and time too.

adjective
compact (of space or design)terse (of writing or speech)tight (of schedule or arrangement)

Examples

  • ，紧凑。
    Zhè ge gōng yù suī rán xiǎo, dàn shè jì dé hěn jǐn còu.
    Although this apartment is small, it's designed very compactly.
  • 紧凑，。
    Xià zhōu de rì chéng fēi cháng jǐn còu, kǒng pà méi shí jiān xiū xi.
    Next week's schedule is very tight; I'm afraid there's no time to rest.
  • 紧凑，。
    Zhè piān bào gào xiě dé hěn jǐn còu, méi yǒu yí jù fèi huà.
    This report is written very tersely, without a single unnecessary word.

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.

紧jǐntight
凑còugather

“紧” (tight) and “凑” (gather) suggest gathered closely, hence compact.

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 緊; 紧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
臤
臤qiān緊jǐn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 緊 pairs 糸 (thread) with 臤 as a sound part; the simplified 紧 is a later shorthand.

Open 紧 →

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 湊; 凑 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
奏
奏zòu湊còu
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 湊 uses 氵 (water) as the meaning element and 奏 as the sound element. The simplified 凑 is a later shorthand.

Open 凑 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Size & Dimension

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