返校 (fǎn jiào) — to return to school (after a vacation or break) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

返校 is a separable verb meaning 'return to school' after a break — between 返 and 校, you can insert 了 or a measure phrase (返了一次校).

verb

to return to school (after a vacation or break)

Examples

返校。
Tóng xué men dōu zài zhǔn bèi fǎn jiào.
The students are all preparing to return to school.
。
Tā hán jià hòu zhī fǎn le yí cì xiào.
After winter break, he only returned to school once.
返校。
Xià zhōu yī wǒ men jiù yào fǎn jiào le.
We'll be returning to school next Monday.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

返 means return and 校 means school, together giving the act of returning to school.

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.

辶反返

Meaning part形符xíngfú

辶Written in full as辵chuòmovement

Sound part声符shēngfú

反

反fǎn返fǎn

Same sound today

返 pairs 辶 (movement) with 反 (sound, with the sense of returning); the whole character originally meant coming back along the path one came from.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

木交校

Meaning part形符xíngfú

木木mùtree

Sound part声符shēngfú

交

交jiāo校jiào

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

校 is built from 木 (tree) on the left and 交 on the right, which supplies the sound.

Appears in

School & Education

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