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通婚 (tōng hūn) — to intermarry, to become related by marriage (between families or groups)

Definition

通婚 means to intermarry — used for marriage between families, clans, ethnic groups, or social classes, not for individuals. Closest verb is 结婚, but 结婚 is a personal act while 通婚 describes a group-level marriage relationship.

verb
to intermarryto become related by marriage (between families or groups)

Examples

  • 。
    Liǎng gè jiā tíng tōng le yí cì hūn.
    The two families intermarried once.
  • 。
    Gǔ dài guì zú zhī jiān jīng cháng tōng hūn.
    Ancient nobles often intermarried.
  • 。
    Tā men jiā zú hé lìng yí gè jiā zú tōng hūn le.
    Their family intermarried with another family.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

通tōngconnect
婚hūnmarriage

通 means to connect, and 婚 means marriage, so the sense is families linking through marriage.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
甬
甬yǒng通tōng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

通 pairs 辶, a part associated with movement, with 甬, which gives the sound.

Open 通 →

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
女女nǚ
Sound part声符shēngfú
昏
昏hūn婚hūn
Same sound today

婚 uses 女 (woman) for the meaning and 昏 for the sound hūn.

Open 婚 →
Appears in
Romance & Marriage

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