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问好 (wèn hǎo) — to send one's regards to; to say hello to

Definition

问好 (wèn hǎo) means to pass along greetings — 'say hello to someone for me,' often through a third party rather than face-to-face. Common pattern: 替/向 + person + 问好.

verb
to send one's regards toto say hello to

Examples

  • 问好。
    Tā měi cì lái dōu xiàng dà jiā wèn hǎo.
    He greets everyone every time he comes.
  • 。
    Qǐng bāng wǒ xiàng wáng lǎo shī wèn gè hǎo.
    Please help me send my regards to Teacher Wang.
  • ，。
    Nǐ qù běi jīng de shí hou, tì wǒ wèn tā hǎo.
    When you go to Beijing, say hello to him for me.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

问wènask
好hǎogood

问 is to ask or greet, and 好 is good or well; together they express sending regards.

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 問; 问 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
門
門mén問wèn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 問 combines 口 (mouth) with 門, which gives the sound; the simplified 问 is a later shorthand and its parts are not the historical components.

Open 问 →

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

好 joins 女 (woman) and 子 (child), understood as a woman with a child, linked to goodness or affection.

Open 好 →
Appears in
Greetings & Politeness5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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