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过往 (guò wǎng) — (verb) to come and go; to have dealings with; (noun) the past; bygone times

Definition

过往 is a more formal, written-style word for 'the past' and for people/traffic that come and go. Compared with the everyday 过去, it sounds literary; versus 来往/往来, it foregrounds past events rather than ongoing contact.

verb
to come and goto have dealings with
noun
the pastbygone times

Examples

  • 过往。
    Jiē shàng xíng rén guò wǎng bú duàn.
    Pedestrians come and go constantly on the street.
  • 过往。
    guò wǎng De shì jiù ràng tā guò qù ba.
    Let the past be past.
  • 过往。
    Tā hé wǒ fù qīn yǒu guò guò wǎng.
    He has had dealings with my father.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

过guòpass
往wǎnggo

“过” and “往” both express passing or going, so it means to come and go, extended to past times.

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 過; 过 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
咼
咼wāi過guò
Same sound today

The traditional form 過 pairs 辵 (walk) with 咼 as a sound component; the simplified 过 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 过 →

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
止止zhǐfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
王
王wáng往wǎng
Same sound today

The form that became 往 paired 止, a foot, with 王 for the sound; a stepping part was later added, and the right side changed.

Open 往 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Time (Abstract)

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