重重 (chóng chóng) — layer upon layer; one after another (describing…

Definition

Paints a picture of many things stacked in layers, not just one after another. 接连 and 陆续 stress time (events following in sequence); 重重 stresses physical or figurative layers piling up.

adjective

layer upon layerone after another (describing things that come in great numbers or successive layers)

Examples

重重，。
Tā jīng lì le chóng chóng kǎo yàn, zhōng yú chéng gōng le.
He went through one trial after another and finally succeeded.
重重。
chóng chóng Yún wù zhē zhù le shān dǐng.
Layers of clouds and mist obscured the mountaintop.
重重，。
Zhè dào tí yǒu chóng chóng nán diǎn, bù róng yì jiě dá.
This problem has layer upon layer of difficulties, not easy to solve.

Origin

Reduplicated word

构词法gòucífǎ

重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

重zhònglayer

“重” layer doubled gives many layers or successive occurrences.

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

人人rénman

Sound part声符shēngfú

東

東dōng重zhòng

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

重 developed from a picture of a man carrying a bag, with 人 for the man and 東 for the bag; a later ground element was folded into the form.

Open 重 →