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门前 (mén qián) — in front of the door / the area in front of a doorway

Definition

noun
in front of the door / the area in front of a doorway

Examples

  • 门前。
    Tā zhàn zài mén qián děng wǒ.
    He stood in front of the door waiting for me.
  • 门前。
    mén qián Yǒu yì bǎ yǐ zi.
    There is a chair in front of the door.
  • 门前。
    Wǒ bǎ xié fàng zài mén qián.
    I put my shoes in front of the door.

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.

门méndoor
前qiánfront

门 is the door and 前 is the front, so it names the front area of a door.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 門; 门 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 門 pictures a gate as two door shapes side by side; the simplified 门 is a later shorthand.

Open 门 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

In the older form of 前, 止 (foot) and 舟 (boat) showed a foot on a boat moving forward; in the current 前 those parts are shortened.

Open 前 →
Appears in
Home & Housing

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